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Showing posts from October, 2019

Download an Android 10 custom ROM for the ASUS ZenFone Max Pro M2, Nokia 6.1/6.1 Plus, Nokia 7 Plus, Moto G5 Plus, and HTC One M9

Back in September, Google released the Android 10 source code and that kickstarted the custom ROM development here on XDA. Since then, we’ve seen several devices receive Android 10 based custom ROMs, including the Xiaomi Redmi 2, Moto G2015, Sony Xperia Z3 Compact, HTC 10 , HTC One M8 , etc. Most recently, the OnePlus 3/3T, Xiaomi Mi Pad 4, Mi 6X, Huawei P Smart 2018, Galaxy A70 and Xperia XA2 Ultra received their first Android 10 based ROMs. And now, six more devices have joined the list. These include the Asus ZenFone Max Pro M2, Nokia 6 .1, 6.1 Plus, Nokia 7 Plus , Moto G5 Plus , and the HTC One M9 . Asus ZenFone Max Pro M2 One of the most popular budget devices from Asus — the ZenFone Max Pro M2 — has now received a build of SuperiorOS Phoenix based on Android 10. The AOSP-based custom ROM offers a near-stock Android experience with just the essential customization options. The ROM seems to be a stable release, however, some users have reported network issues, so I wouldn’t ...

vivo S5 is arriving on November 14

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Vivo teased the S5 earlier this week and today the company announced the smartphone will be unveiled on November 14 at an event in Hangzhou, China. The company made the announcement by posting a video on Weibo. It doesn't reveal much about the S5, but the smartphone was spotted in a video last week with three cameras on its back arranged in a diamond-shaped formation. Details are scarce about the vivo S5 right now, but seeing how the S1 and S1 Pro were photo-centric devices, we expect the S5 to be aimed at the same audience and come with a 48/64MP primary camera and a 32MP...

Q3 2019 Earnings Report: See how major smartphone OEMs are performing

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Smartphones are essential drivers of innovation in today’s world. But at the end of the day, smartphones are still business, and OEMs innovate in this field to make money. Smartphone OEMs like Google, Samsung, Huawei, LG, and Sony have posted their Earnings Reports for Q3 2019, giving us insight on how profitably and comfortably the companies stand in the smartphone business. Other OEMs like Xiaomi and Realme have also witnessed good growth, according to separate reports. Samsung Starting off with the most prolific Android OEM over the years, Samsung’s IT and Mobile Communications Business posted consolidated revenue of KRW 29.25 trillion ($25 billion) and operating profit of KRW 2.92 trillion ($2.5 billion) for Q3 2019. These figures are impressive as revenue for Q3 2018 was KRW 24.91 trillion ($21.3 billion) while operating profits last year were at KRW 2.22 trillion ($1.9 billion), indicating a good 31% increase in profits. This improvement in earnings were thanks to robust shipme...

Huawei MatePad Pro leaks with slim bezels, punch-hole camera, stylus

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A couple or so weeks ago an unannounced Huawei tablet leaked in some official-looking (yet low quality) renders, showing a punch-hole display housing a selfie camera in one corner, incredibly thin bezels for a tablet, a keyboard accessory, and a stylus that magnetically attaches to the tablet's top side. Today Evan Blass, aka @evleaks, has outed a new press render of the same device, and also provided us with its commercial name. It's going to be called Huawei MatePad Pro, and not MediaPad M7, as previously rumored. Given the design, stylus and keyboard support, and the name, Huawei...

AMD 3rd Gen Ryzen: Continued Look Via Ryzen 5 3600X/3400G

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AMD’s Next Horizon Gaming event, leading up to E3 2019, had given us a lot of information on the third generation of Ryzen. During the middle of testing for the 3900X and 3700X review , we received another package – this time containing the Ryzen 5 3600X and Ryzen 5 3400G. How would these fare compared to our previous third-gen Ryzen results? We also wanted to take a look at certain models over each generation and see how they have improved during these three years. To assist in analyzing that, we broke out the previous 6-core, 12-thread samples and the initial generation of Ryzen-G. Note: The Ryzen 5 3400G and Ryzen 5 3600X used in this review were provided by AMD for review purposes. A full list of components and sources are included in the article. Unboxing/Initial Thoughts – Ryzen 5 3400G & Ryzen 5 3600X Since we received most of the new components with the initial review, these processors came alone. The packaging is similar to the ones from before, and in this case, it m...

Samsung Q3 profits drop, but mobile division excels

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Samsung is the latest company to issue its Q3 financial report and the results show a 56% decrease in year over year operating profits. During the July-September period, the company racked in just KRW 7.78 trillion ($6.58 billion) in profits down from KRW 17.57 trillion ($15.04 billion) last year. The sizeable drop is caused due to the slumping semiconductor market and weak demand for memory chips. On the flip side, smartphone profits fared better with solid sales of the Galaxy Note10 and A series helping push the mobile division to KRW 2.92 trillion ($2.5 billion) profit, which is 32%...

Here’s your first look at the new foldable Motorola Razr

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Motorola (and Lenovo) have been working on a foldable Razr phone for a while now. We’ve been tracking the device since last year and it has slowly become more of a reality. Back in May, the company used a fan-made render to show off the concept, but we’ve yet to see any images of the real thing. That finally changes today. Evan Blass (@evleaks) has shared the first image of the Motorola Razr (stylized as “razr”) foldable phone. We can now see why Motorola used the fan-made renders because the real device looks very similar. At first glance, you may think this is simply an original Razr flip phone. It has the same chin on the bottom and a raised Motorola logo under the outside display. But if you look closely you can see there’s no archaic number pad here. This is a full touchscreen folded vertically. This image matches up with the outlines we saw back in March . The chin appears to house a small button or fingerprint sensor (or both). The outside display is not lit up in this imag...

Upgrade Your PS4 with this 2TB Hybrid Hard Drive Kit and 16GB Flash Drive for $99

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Once you start purchasing digital downloads for your PS4, storage space can quickly become a problem. Even a 500GB hard drive won’t be enough for committed gamers. The Fantom Drives PS4 Hard Drive Upgrade Kit offers a simple solution. The kit contains a Seagate Firecuda 2TB hybrid drive, offering masses of space and speedy performance. You also get a 16GB flash drive and some useful accessories. Right now, you can pick up the whole bundle for just $99 via the XDA Developers Depot. You might think that 2TB is a little over the top. But when you consider that Read Dead Redemption 2 takes up 98GB alone, this upgrade seems pretty essential. The Seagate Firecuda SSHD range of drives combines the speed of SSDs with the capacity of traditional hard drives. This 2TB model has a huge 128MB cache, and it’s really easy to install. The kit provides a screwdriver, an aluminum enclosure, and a quickstart guide to help you get the job done. In addition, you get a soft carry pouch for your ...

Xiaomi's Mi Watch strap colors revealed ahead of launch

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We expect Xiaomi's Mi Watch to be released next week and we already got a few teasers for it. Now Xiaomi shared an image of the watch bands and it looks like four colors will be made available at launch. We've got a black one, gray, white and what looks like navy blue color. The straps are made of the so-called fluoro rubber that has anti-allergic and, anti-sweat properties. The band is also designed with a quick release mechanism for maximum convenience. That's all we have for now but it's enough to keep us excited for the next week's release. Source

Microsoft’s Your Phone app drops support for Bluetooth Low Energy connections

Smartphones have overshadowed desktops to become the primary point of interaction for a lot of people. There’s a lot happening on your phone at any given point, and it can be hard to keep track of all of it if you are using a computing machine other than your smartphone. Microsoft took a jab at solving this problem with the Your Phone app, an app that is awfully named but did get the job done. Your Phone allowed screen mirroring from your smartphone to your Windows desktop and enabled other functionalities like notification syncing and phone calls . Previously, the app expanded calling support for all Android 7+ smartphones through Bluetooth, but now, the app is rolling back on this by dropping support altogether for Bluetooth Low Energy connections. Your Phone mirrored the screen of your Android smartphone to a Windows 10 device over Bluetooth Low Energy, which allowed for wider compatibility on Android but sometimes, it did not work as intended. Microsoft worked with Samsung to d...

Caviar introduces iPhone 11 Pro with half a kilo of pure gold on its back

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Luxury brand Caviar has introduced its new iPhone 11 Pro lineup, called Discovery. This time the theme is the Solar System and the most impressive variant is called Solarius and comes with half a kilo of 18-carat gold on the back. The price of the phone is just over $70,000 to make it the most expensive iPhone 11 Pro you can purchase. The cost can increase to exactly $71,520 if you decide to go for the 512 GB variant of the iPhone 11 Pro Max. Fans of Caviar and Apple can also get an iPhone without the extra 500 grams, if they go for the Mars, Terra or Luna options. They have an...

Honor 9X Camera Review – Mid-Ranger with Flagship Versatility

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Every year Honor pushes the boundaries of what we can expect from budget devices with their X-Series phones. As we approach the holidays, Honor launches their newest addition to the family, the Honor 9X. Powered by the Kirin 710F, the Honor 9X brings a few newer features that set this phone above others in its class. A full-screen notch-less display is made possible by the motorized pop-up camera that houses the selfie sensor. Focusing on Photography With the 9X, Honor put a great deal of attention into the photography aspect of this phone. The device is fitted with a 48MP triple camera that includes an 8MP ultrawide lens and a 2MP depth sensor. The f/1.8 aperture is paired with the half-inch sensor to produce super clear photos. The AIS super night mode promises improve your low-light photos. Observe some of our initial sample shots below. Sample Shots 48MP Shot [Default Mode] 16MP Selfie Shot [Default Mode] 48MP Shot 12MP Shot 48MP Shot 48MP Shot ...

Xiaomi Mi Note 10 Geekbench listing confirms it's a rebadged Mi CC9 Pro

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Xiaomi is all set to unveil the Mi CC9 Pro on November 5 in China, and nine days later, it will announce the Mi Note 10. The Mi CC9 Pro and Mi Note 10 will sport a penta-camera setup with a 108MP primary camera. The Mi Note 10 was expected to be a re-branded Mi CC9 Pro for the global market, and the smartphone's Geekbench 5 listing now confirms that. The Mi Note 10 and Mi CC9 Pro have appeared on Geekbench with the same specs, but the Note 10 has 6GB RAM onboard while its Chinese counterpart has 8GB RAM. However, the CC9 Pro's TENAA listing reveals it will arrive in two more RAM options...

Realme X gets Dark Mode and October 2019 security patch with new update

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The Realme X is receiving a new software update which brings in the much-requested system-wide Dark Mode to the smartphone. Additionally, the new firmware bumps up the Android security patch level on Realme X to October 2019 and adds an option in the settings menu that lets you swipe down on the home screen to expand the notification bar. The update also improves the touch experience when gaming and adds a toggle in the notification center that lets you switch between SIMs. You can check out the full changelog below for more details. Security Android security...

Canalys: Samsung and Huawei extend lead on Apple as global smartphone market returns to growth

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Canalys posted today its analysis on the smartphone market in Q3, just a day after the report for China. For the first time in two years, the market saw an increase in total sales, and Huawei's performance at home might be a big part of that. The Shenzhen-based company posted a 29% annual growth, but looking at the bigger picture, it actually managed to sell fewer phones outside China than the Q3 period last year. Between July and September 2019, smartphone makers sold 352.4 million units, which is just a percent more than the 348.9 million sales last year, but it is a positive...

EMUI 10 beta goes international, adds support for 8 devices

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Huawei's EMUI 10 open beta program has been active in China for some time now and the company is finally extending its availability to international users. Starting today, owners of the Mate 20 series, P30 lite, Nova 5T and P Smart 2019 will be able to test out the latest EMUI features. Complete list of supported devices: Mate 20 Mate 20 Lite Mate 20 Pro Mate 20 X P30 Lite Nova 5T P Smart 2019 P Smart + 2019 If your device is on the list and you want to test out the latest EMUI, you'll first have to download Huawei's Beta app. After that, you're several short steps...

Xiaomi is working on its own front-facing slow-motion “Slofie” feature

Slofies are all the rage these days — or at least that’s what smartphone OEMs think. The Apple iPhone 11 boasts of slow-motion front-facing videos as one of its highlight features, with Apple calling it “slofie”, short for slow-motion selfie. Android smartphones have been capable of slow-motion video through their rear camera for some years now, but no OEM really paid attention to bringing over the feature to the front-facing camera, perhaps because no one really asked for it. But now, Samsung has begun rolling out the slofie feature to the Samsung Galaxy S10 , and Xiaomi is expected to follow suit by introducing slofies to its devices. As spotted by XDA Member kacskrz , Xiaomi is working on bringing in the slofie feature to MIUI devices. We could spot code evidence within the MIUI Camera app that suggests that Xiaomi has added a new slow-motion mode for the front camera that records videos at 1280 x 720 at 120fps. There also exist several methods to check if the phone model is defin...

Xiaomi Mi CC9 Pro will pack a 5,260 mAh battery with 30W fast charging support

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Chinese phone maker Xiaomi will unveil its penta-camera smartphone, Mi CC9 Pro, on November 5. The company has already confirmed a few of the phone's features, and today it revealed its battery details. Xiaomi posted an image on Chinese social network Weibo confirming the phone will pack a 5,260 mAh battery. It will support 30W fast charging which will take the cell from flat to 58% in 30 minutes, and take another 35 minutes for a full charge. In another post, Xiaomi shared an image showing off the Mi CC9 Pro's curved edge screen with a waterdrop notch. Xiaomi says the phone will...

Google Assistant smart devices will soon be able to stream from SiriusXM

A recent teardown of the Google app version 10.81.6.29.arm64 revealed a number of upcoming features. Among these was the updated Collections UI, smart screenshots , and Google Podcast bookmarking. The teardown also revealed that Google was testing a new feature that will allow you to link specific radio services to the Google Assistant . Google is now finally rolling out this feature to Assistant-powered smart speakers and mobile devices. According to a recent blog post from the company, the new feature will allow you to stream SiriumXM’s radio channels using the Google Assistant. The company has added several new commands to allow you to choose from a variety of different talk shows, commercial-free music, and sports stations with just your voice. For instance, you’ll be able to say “Hey Google, play The Beatles Channel on SiriusXM” to play hits from the band. If you’re not sure which channel to listen to, you can also say “Hey Google, play SiriusXM” and the Assistant will automatica...

MIUI Quick Settings provides quick access to hidden phones settings on Xiaomi devices

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Xiaomi’s MIUI Android skin is a far cry from the stock Android experience we all know and love. However, it packs in some really useful customization options and features that many Xiaomi users appreciate. But did you know that the OS also packs in a few settings that are hidden from users? Accessing these hidden settings could be a bit tricky, which is why you should check out the new MIUI Quick Settings app. It’s a fairly straightforward app that lets you access all of MIUI’s hidden settings from a single location. The app works on all MIUI ROMs based on Android 5 Lollipop and higher. With the app, you can get access to features like a complete hardware test, which will allow you to check all of your phone’s hardware components. Along with the hardware test, MIUI Quick Settings also packs in an Android Test which will quickly provide information about the Android version on your device, a network switcher, an application manager, a notifications manager, and more. The app even ...