Also on our show, OnePlus may stuff 10GB of RAM in its McLaren phone, the OPPO phone that may fold and the 12 days of deals from Samsung.
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It seems Vodafone is jumping on the reward scheme bandwagon, having launched its 'VeryMe' scheme for mobile phone customers to get free gifts and discounts.
VeryMe's first offer includes discounts on Odeon cinema tickets (two for £7), free Costa coffee and treats from Millie's Cookies, Hotel Chocolat and Tesco. There are also free trials on apps and a whole load of other rewards - and not to mention you get a free extra 2GB of data when you sign up.
Vodafone's UK Chief Executive Nick Jeffery, said: “VeryMe Rewards is designed as a personalised thank you to our customers for their loyalty. The Vodafone App is quick and easy to use and rewards customers with daily treats and offers that have been individually tailored to them.”
Vodafone isn't the first mobile phone provider to do this. O2 has its Priority Reward scheme and Three has its interestingly named 'Wuntu' app to give customers deals alongside their contract. Where Vodafone seems to differ is that the app will tailor the offers to you so you're only ever getting deals that you're interested in.
If you are already with the provider you can get started by downloading the Vodafone App and clicking through to the VeryMe section and over time the app will figure out what you like and tailor its suggestions to your liking.
If the idea of VeryMe has caught your interest but you're not yet on Vodafone, check out our best Vodafone deals page to try and find a contract that works for you.
Asus has officially unveiled its new gaming-focused smartphone bearing the ROG brand (which we first saw at Computex 2018). The handset competes with the Razer Phone, but Razer has not shared any plans of bringing their gaming phone to the country yet. So the ROG Phone is the only true-gaming device available in India.
The ROG Phone is touted as the first smartphone in the world to feature a 3D vapor-chamber cooling system, designed to keep the thermals under control while running demanding games.
The hardware consists of a Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 octa-core chip with the clock speed pushed up to 2.96GHz (as opposed to the normal 2.8GHz), and the integrated Adreno 630 GPU is specially optimised for gaming by Asus.
You can read our hands-on Asus ROG phone now, and you can also check out our first impressions in the video below.
Apart from raw power, the Snapdragon 845 chipset focuses on minimizing thermal throttling aided by the aforementioned cooling system. It also brings along a detachable cooler for an extra boost on the overheating prevention front – while still ensuring battery longevity so your gaming sessions on the go aren’t cut short.
The 6-inch screen keeps pace with the core hardware, as it’s an AMOLED display which supports HDR with a 90Hz refresh rate and 1ms response time to help ensure smooth frame rates.
It's a given that the phone is designed with gamers in mind, and that means side-mounted USB-C ports designed to plug into the controller and other gaming accessories, along with highly responsive game-focused controls that include advanced force feedback haptics and a pair of programmable ‘ultrasonic AirTriggers’.
Asus further unveiled a number of optional accessories to go with the ROG Phone. It includes a TwinView Dock which facilitates a dual-screen handheld mode and a Mobile Desktop Dock for those who want to use the phone to power a desktop-style gaming experience. There will also be a Gamevice controller, to give you console-like controls, and a WiGig Dock on offer to wirelessly cast your gaming sessions to a big screen.
ASUS ROG Phone will be available at Rs 69,999 exclusively on Flipkart starting 29th November 2018. A special no-cost EMI, with tenure options of 6, 9 and 12 months will also be available on all credit and debit cards. Under this scheme, the ROG Phone will be available for purchase by paying an EMI starting at Rs 5,833 per month for 12 months.
Accessories - Professional Dock, will be available at Rs 5,499; GameVice (Joystick) at Rs 5,999; TwinView Dock at Rs 21,999 Desktop Dock at Rs 12,999 and ROG Phone Case at Rs 2499.
Kip Hakes is one of the UK's leading 'daddy bloggers. He enlisted the help of his six-year-old son James to try out Google's Family Link app with Nokia smartphones. You can follow Kip at his website, and on Twitter and Instagram.
I was an adult when I got my first phone, my daughter was around 10 when she got hers – and my son has been using one of his mum’s old phones since he was five. It’s not something he takes to school or leaves the house with – it’s merely a device on which he can play games, watch YouTube Kids, and send me and the rest of his family messages, endless emojis and GIFs on WhatsApp.
Handing over a smartphone to a child is a big step, and until recently it’s been hard to manage what your child can see and do on their phone. Manufacturers have created handsets specifically designed for kids, but they often come with their own ecosystems of apps, and fairly limited functionality and parental controls.
Nokia asked me to take a look at Google’s ‘Family Link’ app, which enables parents to manage the apps on their children’s device. They kindly sent me a Nokia 7.1, and my six-year-old son James a Nokia 3.1, to give the Family Link software a try.
The Family Link software comes in two flavors – there’s an app for the parents and an app for the children. They require both the adults and children to have Google Accounts (you can’t use Google Apps accounts like the ones your kids get at their school). The parent installs the app on their phone and becomes the ‘Family Manager’. You then install the child’s app on their phone, and create a ‘Family’. You can add additional ‘parents’ to the account, and more children too. The whole set-up process takes less than five minutes.
Once the Family is set up, there are myriad options at your disposal. You can choose which Apps the children have access to, and disable those they shouldn’t be using. You can set content filters for internet browsing and Google Play Store.
A feature I really like is that you can set screen time, so you don’t have to keep an eye on how much time your child is spending on their phone and take it away from them, as it’s limited automatically. You can also set ‘bed times’, so the phone is shut down when James is meant to be asleep. He would wake up early and play games occasionally, but that has stopped now – the phone knows that after 6pm and before 6.30am he shouldn’t be using it, and it won’t let him.
Talking about not using the phone, you can also ‘Lock’ the handset – so if there’s a time when you’d rather the children weren’t glued to their phones you can stop access immediately.
The Family Link app also shows what apps your children have been using, and how long for. If you’re worried that they’re spending too long glued to Minecraft, or Hay Day, you can disable the app with a swipe. You can also lock down the installation of new apps, or purchases via the Google Play Store – so there won’t be any surprises on your bank statement because your little angels have blown £300 on costumes and power-ups in their favorite games.
If your child is older and you want to keep an eye on their location, the Family Link app will show you the location of the handset, and if you press the navigation icon Google Maps will navigate you to their location. There’s also a ‘Play Sound’ function that will ring the handset (even if it’s on silent), which is helpful when a phone has fallen down the side of the sofa, or under the bed!
The Family Link software acts as a system administrator on the phone, in a similar way to how a ‘work phone’ might be tied to an organization. While the Family Link software is discreet, it does show a persistent notification on the handset to say that the device is being monitored by Family Link.
The beauty of having Family Link on the Nokia 7.1 and Nokia 3.1 is that they are Android One handsets. This, in layman's terms, mean they get the latest security patches and Android updates first. Android One has only been adopted by a handful of phone manufacturers (including Nokia), so it’s good to know that the phone’s operating system is always up to date and secure. You can’t guarantee this with older phones from other manufacturers – the old phone James was using hadn’t had a security update for years!
Family Link isn’t spy software – it doesn’t show you what’s on the screen of the kid’s phone, or send you copies of every message your child sends or receives. And it’s not a replacement for good parenting and keeping a close eye on your children; Family Link is a tool to ensure the phone isn’t used excessively, and that unsuitable apps and content are not available.
The granular controls enable you to set limits per child – so you’ll probably give your teenager more access than your six-year-old. Either way, Family Link is helping you to ensure that your children are shielded from the darker aspects of the internet. Plus, the screen time and bedtime functions enable you to make sure they aren’t as addicted to their phones as we all are!
Qualcomm has detailed a new $100m investment fund for startups working in the field of mobile Artificial Intelligence (AI).
The first investment is in AnyVision, which specialises in face, body and object recognition for on-device AI capabilities. By analysing data on the device, the spread of data is minimised and therefore privacy is protected.
Qualcomm Ventures will make future investments in on-device AI with an emphasis on those developing technologies for areas like autonomous cars, robotics and Machine Learning (ML). These will build on Qualcomm’s own research efforts in the field of AI.
“This investment builds on our long history of successful AI investments, including Cruise Automation, Brain Corp., Clarifai, Prospera, SenseTime and Retail Next,” said Quinn Li, head of Qualcomm Ventures. “Through the AI Fund, we’ll continue to seek out startups, with a focus on autonomous cars, robotics, computer vision and IoT, who are developing new AI applications, advanced machine learning technologies and AI/ML platforms across different verticals.”
On-device AI is becoming a unique differentiator for major handsets, with features such as voice-activated assistants, intelligence-based personalisation and smart cameras becoming increasingly common.
5G networks will also accelerate adoption through faster speeds , greater capacity and ultra-low latency enabled by changes to operator’s core networks. Whereas most functions are currently deployed in the core, virtualisation and software defined software will allow these to be moved around the network, closer to the customer.
Qualcomm’s role in this shift is through the creation of AI-enabled components and 5G modems used by the world’s leading smartphone and device manufacutrers.
“At Qualcomm, we invent breakthrough technologies that transform how the world connects, computes, and communicates,” added Steve Mollenkopf, Qualcomm CEO. “For over a decade, Qualcomm has been investing in the future of machine learning. As a pioneer of on-device AI, we strongly believe intelligence is moving from the cloud to the edge. Qualcomm’s AI strategy couples leading 5G connectivity with our R&D, fueling AI to transform industries, business models and experiences.”
Reports from Taiwan talk about how Apple's reduced iPhone orders do not affect TSMC, but they do impact other supply chain partners.
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A OnePlus 6T McLaren Edition could be just around the corner as the two companies officially announced their partnership today.
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There’s no doubt that the Samsung Galaxy S10 range will be powerful. But based on a new benchmark there could be a significant difference between the power of the models using a Snapdragon 8150 chipset (which the US is likely to get) and those powered by an Exynos 9820 (which most of the rest of the world will probably get).
Shared by leaker Ice universe (who has a fairly good track record), the latest benchmark is for the Exynos-powered Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus. It’s an AnTuTu benchmark showing 6GB of RAM, 128GB of storage and a score of 325,076.
Now, at first glance that might look great. After all, the highest scoring Android phone currently listed on AnTuTu is the Huawei Mate 20 Pro, with a score of 309, 628, so this beats that by a significant margin.
However, when you widen results out to include iOS devices as well, the score here is topped by all three of Apple’s latest phones, with the iPhone XS taking the overall top spot at 352,405.
Given that the iPhone XS will have been out for a good few months by the time the Galaxy S10 Plus arrives that’s not great. Though it’s not that surprising either – Apple’s phones often beat Android in benchmarks.
That’s not all though. We’ve already seen a leaked AnTuTu benchmark seemingly for a Snapdragon 8150-powered device and that came away with a score of 362,292. That’s substantially higher than this latest benchmark and even has Apple’s phones beat.
So if these benchmarks are real then the Snapdragon model of the S10 could be noticeably more powerful than the Exynos version. That’s perhaps not surprising when you consider that in some ways the Snapdragon 8150 seems to be a more advanced chip – it’s rumored to be a 7nm one, making it smaller and likely more efficient than the 8nm Exynos 9820.
Of course, one or both of these benchmarks might be faked and even if they’re not they’re presumably based on pre-release hardware, so they may not be entirely representative.
Benchmarks in themselves also aren’t always the best indicator of performance, and even this latest score is still very high, so both models should be among the most powerful phones around. So we wouldn’t worry too much, but if these differences pan out it’s sure to still be a disappointment to buyers outside the US.
Via PhoneArena
Rumors have been building around the Moto G7 family, with two of the devices reaching the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and showing off some of their specs - and now a third has reached that stage.
We've now seen the Moto G7 Play listed at the FCC - spotted by DroidLife - and the listing provides further evidence that the mid-range devices from Motorola next year are set to sport notches.
That in turn suggests the Moto G7 Play will have a full screen front design with the fingerprint scanner moved to the rear of the phone, but we don't currently know what size the display on the G7 Play will be.
The listing also confirms the phone will come in two colors: black and blue. But there may be further colors available at launch as well. On the back of the phone there's a single camera, and the handset also sports a headphone jack as well as a 2,820mAh battery inside.
The listing also says the Moto G7 Play will feature a Qualcomm Snapdragon 632 processor.
Given the prevalence of notch-based designs on smartphones in 2018 and the company introducing its first on the Motorola One earlier this year, we're not particularly surprised by this news.
What's interesting is when we might see the Moto G7 family officially unveiled. The company released the Moto G6, G6 Plus and G6 Play at an event in Brazil back in April this year, so normally we'd expect the company to follow that up at a similar time in 2019.
So far, it doesn't look like that will be the case though, as the FCC listing is so complete it may be that the company is planning to properly announce these phones at an earlier date. If Motorola does, you can expect to learn more about all three handsets in the next few months.
Via Engadget
Mobile phone manufacturer OnePlus and automotive maker McLaren have announced a technical partnership and teased a special announcement for December.
The announcement from the two brands doesn't go into detail about exactly what to expect from the partnership, but it was revealed that "the two brands will unveil the first stage of the collaboration on December 11, 2018 at the 'Salute to Speed' launch event, held at the McLaren Technology Centre in the UK."
The mostly likely outcome is a McLaren-branded OnePlus device - possibly a special edition OnePlus 6T - as the press release highlights OnePlus' previous collaborations with brands which have led to limited edition devices.
OnePlus isn't the first phone manufacturer to link up with an automotive firm. BlackBerry, and more recently Huawei, have produced a number of Porsche Design handsets, while Chinese firm Oppo has its own collaboration with Lamborghini.
These special edition phones tend to bear the auto maker's logo on the body, come pre-loaded with a custom theme that closely follows the design language of the cars on screen, and - more recently - boast additional features such as more storage or in-display fingerprint scanners, not to mention inflated price tags.
This is said to be a long-term technology partnership, which means we could be in for a number of McLaren branded handsets, but all will be revealed on December 11.
HMD Global is teasing a phone for India, which might end up to be the Nokia 8.1, which is the 7.1 Plus, which is the global X7. Confused yet?
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Chinese tech giant Huawei had been struggling to find a space in the Indian market until it launched the flagship P20 Pro and its siblings in India. However, Huawei fans in India never got a chance to experience the company's mighty Mate-series. But things changed today, as Huawei launched their first Mate phone -- the Mate 20 Pro in India.
The phone was launched back in October alongside the Mate 20 Pro, which is a toned down version of the Pro variant. The two new flagships incorporate the best technology the brand has to offer, with some high-end additions made on the Mate 20 Pro - including a genuine world's first feature.
We've had a decent amount of time with both phones, so here's our hands-on Huawei Mate 20 Pro review.
On paper, the Mate 20 Pro looks like the next big name in the Android smartphone market. More so, because it brings some of the most innovative smartphone features that have not been witnessed in the existing handsets yet.
To begin with, the most impressive world-first feature is the reverse wireless charging. While many flagships still lack wireless charging support, the Mate 20 Pro goes a notch ahead to let users charge other wireless charging supported phones when placed on its back. For instance, if your friend in dire need of some battery life, and their handset supports wireless charging, you can place it back-to-back with the Mate 20 Pro and get some juice across.
The Mate 20 Pro also packs a massive 4200mAh battery to ensure that it doesn't run out of juice even after lending some to your friend. On top, it gets Huawei's SuperCharge technology, which claims to charge 70% of battery in 30 minutes using 40W of power output. Further, it is also claimed to offer the fastest 15W wireless charging.
The innards look promising too: Huawei's new Kirin 980 chipset is combined with 6GB of RAM and 128GB internal storage, with additional space provided by a nanoSD card, which makes it the first phone to come with a nanoSD card support in India. Of course, the new format will be more expensive than the microSD card.
The display is probably the most impressive thing on the phone. It has a 6.4-inch curved OLED display, and a WHD long-style display (19.5:9, if you're getting technical), which means 3120 x 1440 resolution packed into the small frame.
The camera is the other high-end spec to let you know about, with 40MP, 20MP and 8MP sensors on the back promising great low-light performance, ultra-wide angle snaps and a 3x telephoto zoom, while there's a 24MP sensor on the front for selfies.
It comes with Android 9.0 Pie with Huawei's EMUI 9.0 skin on top.
If you want to find out more, you know what to do: head to our hands-on Huawei Mate 20 Pro review.
The Huawei Mate 20 Pro is priced at Rs 69,990 for the 6GB RAM and 128GB storage variant. As a launch offer, customers who buy the phone can get the Sennheiser PXC 500 worth Rs 29,990 with the phone at an overall cost of Rs 71,990
Sale starts on December 3 and will be available exclusively on Amazon in two colors - Emerald green and Twilight.
In case things weren't confusing enough, a new report claims there will be at least four Galaxy S10 models. Read the latest gossip!
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Also on our show, a Pixel 3 Lite leak pits current phones against the future, Huawei punches back with a new hole and the Cyber Monday deals you've missed!
The post Galaxy S10 display details, LG smartphone with 16 cameras | Pocketnow Daily appeared first on Pocketnow.