Author: Ashlyn Fernandes

Google Pixel 4 spotted again with a square camera bump on the rear

We’ve already come across numerous leaks about the Pixel 4 this week. After a bunch of CAD renders that were leaked on the web, Google surprisingly posted an official image of the flagship. Now, the Google Pixel 4 has been spotted in the wild, and the latest leak lines up nicely with earlier leaks of the device.

The latest set of images posted by 9to5Google, show the device with a squared camera box which houses the dual-rear cameras. That said, these images don’t give us any new information since Google teased official photos of the handset.

Credits: 9to5Google

Going by the latest leaks, it appears Pixel 4 will be the first Pixel handset to get more than one primary camera sensor. So far, leaks hint at dual-rear cameras for the Pixel 4, though rumor has it there could be one more ToF sensor. Besides, there appears to be a tiny cutout for the microphone on the top of the device.

Another noticeable change based on the leaks is a single physical button on the left, which could be either a power button or a dedicated button to activate Google assistant. It’s also worth noting that no such button exists on the Pixel 3 series, as it had all its physical keys housed on the right.

Significantly reduced bezels

Besides, leaks also point at the absence of bezels or near bezel-free edges on the new Pixel 4. Some sources even point out at a Galaxy S10-like punch hole at the top right corner for the selfie camera. It could either be a dual-camera setup or a single camera bundled with a front flash.

Also, the bottom bezel gets reduced significantly, which could mean the Pixel 4 won’t pack front firing speakers. Leaks also point towards the absence of a physical fingerprint sensor, which suggests it could either be placed underneath the display or within the side-mounted power button.

Google is expected to unveil the Pixel 4 series sometime in late October. More leaks about the handset are likely to surface as we near its official release. We’ll update you as soon as we hear anything new. Until then, keep checking back for more.

June 14, 2019
Cyberpunk 2077 featuring Keanu Reeves to release in April 2020

Cyperpunk 2077 is slated for a release on April 16, 2020, on the PS4, Xbox One, and PC. Notably, the game will feature Hollywood star Keanu Reeves, the lead actor in blockbusters such as The Matrix and John Wick. During the ongoing E3, the star himself came on stage to announce the game’s release date.

Cyberpunk 2077 is an open-world sci-fi shooter, set in the future in a town called Night City. Developer Projekt Red says the game offers cybernetic body modification that gives your character a range of different skills. A cinematic trailer was also revealed during the ongoing E3, The cinematic shows a man, V, who returns to his employer to get his reward.

That said, V has raised many eyebrows and attracted a lot of unnecessary attention which his boss did not like at all. Hence, V is now fighting for his life. John Wick star Keanu Reeves shows up at the end of the trailer. ‘We have a city to burn,” says Keanu. CyberPunk 2077 is a tale fo revenge, which perfectly suits the John Wick star. Sadly, the game’s trailer does not reveal any in-game footage.

Pre-order page for the Cyberpunk 2077 is already setup on Amazon and Steam. However, they are yet to go live.

June 9, 2019
Next-Gen Airpods could feature health tracking capabilities

Apple’s second generation AirPods are expected to be announced this year. And the latest information about the lightning pods suggests they could come with health monitoring capabilities. According to a report by DigiTimes, several Apple suppliers such as Compeq Manufacturing, Flexium Interconnect, and more are working on the development of next-gen AirPods.

However, the report hasn’t delved into specific details. For instance, there’s no information as to what kind of health monitoring features next AirPods will come with.

Although, such news shouldn’t come as a surprise as Apple has invested heavily in health monitoring. The latest Apple Watch Series 4 is good example in this context. As it comes with health-focused features such as ECG monitoring and other features such as fall detection.

The success of the Apple Watch 4 primarily because of its fitness tracking features has reportedly convinced Apple to invest heavily in the fitness tracking market. This essentially implies that Apple is all-in on health tracking Hence, we can expect next-gen Apple products to come with fitness oriented features.

Elsewhere, the report also suggests that upcoming AirPods might also get a major design overhaul. But then again, no specifcs were added in the report. That said, the report did mention that second generation AirPods could launch in the first half of 2019.

January 23, 2019
Upcoming Moto Razr’s design possibly revealed in a patent

We’ve already come across reports that Lenovo-owned Motorola plans to resurrect the iconic Moto Razr. Now, a patent filing by Motorola Mobility has possibly revealed the design of the upcoming handset.

91Mobiles spotted the patent filing of a Motorola handset with World Intellectual Property Organization. The filing contains several diagrams that show a folding handset with a clamshell form factor. Accoring to the filing, the Moto Razr will have two screens, a small screen on the outside and a folding screen on the inside.

However, there’s no mention of the Razr brand in the filing. That said, the illustrations are largely similar to the Moto Razr V3’s design. For dsintance, it shows the same iconic hinge as well as the same chin.

Credits: WIPO

The newly found Motorola patent comes shortly after a report by WSJ which claimed Lenovo plans to bring back the iconic Razr phone. Besides, the report also notes that the upcoming Razr will be a Verizon exclusive in the US. Also, Lenovo is reportedly planning to launch the handset in February at a price tag of $1500. That said, the report also adds that the device is undergoing testing, and exact details are yet to be finalized.

Other details such as specifications, screen size, and design remain a mystery for the moment. The report, however, does note that Lenovo plans to manufacture over 200,000 units of the new RAZRs, which is rather surprising given it’s a $1500 luxury phone.

January 21, 2019
Pixel 3 Lite allegedly shows up in a video

We’ve already come across several leaks and rumors about the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL Lite. Past reports indicate the search engine giant plans to launch the duo in the US this spring in partnership with Verizon. Today, we have another leak about the Pixel 3 Lite, which surprisingly, comes in the form of a review.

Sources indicate the Pixel 3 Lite shown in the video is likely a pre-production sample. However, it falls in line with earlier leaks which tipped at a plastic body instead of metal like the standard Pixel 3 range. Even the frame appears to have been made of plastic, and the white color variant shown in the video sports a yellow power button.

Besides, the video reveals the presence of the classic 3.5mm headphone jack on top. Another interesting bit of information revealed is the repositioning of the SIM card slots, which have now been moved to the side.

In terms of specifications, the video suggets the Pixel 3 Lite gets powered by Snapdragon 670 chipset paired with 4GB of RAM and 32GB of built-in storage. Elsewhere, it features a 12.2MP primary camera as well as an 8MP front-facing shooter. The device runs Android 9 Pie and gets fuleled by a 2915mAh battery. You can check out the video below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pwaT4u-1Y60

Finally, the video suggests Google plans to launch the Pixel 3 Lite and Pixel 3 XL Lite sometime in Spring this year, right after the I/O conference.

Readers, however, are advised to take this information with a pinch of salt as nothing is official for the moment. We’ll update you as soon as we hear anyhting new. Until then, keep checking back for more.

January 17, 2019
Massive breach exposes 773 million emails, 21 million passwords

We’ve come across security hacks time and again. However, the latest breach takes it a whole new level exposing 773 million email addresses and over 21 million unique passwords. Experts believe it’s possibly the largest data breach in history, as more than 87GB of emails addresses and passwords were leaked by hackers.

The breach was first reported by security researcher Troy Hunt, who explains that the hack was a collection of numerous other data breaches, going all the way back to 2008. The trove of leaked data was posted popular hacking forum, Mega, though was shortly taken down. The leaked data was dumped in a folder called #Collection1, which had over 12,000 files with a size of over 87GB.

“Collection #1 is a set of email addresses and passwords totalling 2,692,818,238 rows. It’s made up of many different individual data breaches from literally thousands of different sources,” explained Hunt.

Is it a big deal?

So, how serious is this issue? Hunt suggests it’s pretty big despite the fact that information such as credit card and social security numbers have not been leaked. For one, he says the way in which passwords were dumped in #Collection1. They were all in plain text, compared to other data breaches where passwords were cryptographically hashed, making them very difficult to read. Besides, Hunt found that nearly 140 million email accounts and over 100 million unique passowrds in the breach were new to his new database.

Hunt has also loaded the email addresses and passwords on Have I Been Pwned. It’s a database where you can check whether your email or password was affected by the breach. He further advises users to look into Password Manager to secure all their sensitive information such as passwords and banking info.

“A password manager provides you with a secure vault for all your secrets to be stored in (not just passwords, I store things like credit card and banking info in mine too), and its sole purpose is to focus on keeping them safe and secure”, further added Hunt.

January 16, 2019
Apple launches smart battery cases for its 2018 iPhone range

Apple today launched new smart battery cases for the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR. Priced at $129, these new smart battery cases are designed to offer extra battery life to iPhone users. They feature a similar design compared to battery cases offered for the iPhone 7, sporting a bump in the back which houses the battery pack.

Available in Black and White color options, each battery case offers different battery life depending upon the iPhone model. For instance, the iPhone XS battery case is rated to deliver up to 33 hours of talk time, up to 25 hours of video playback, and 21 hours of internet use.

On the other hand, the iPhone XS Max smart battery case, when paired with the iPhone XS Max churns out 37 hours of talk time, 25 hours of video playback, and up to 20 hours of internet use. Finally, the smart battery case for the iPhone XR offers up to 39 hours of talk time, up to 27 hours of video playback, and up to 22 hours of internet use.

Compatible with Qi-certified wireless chargers

Besides, these new smart battery cases support Qi-wireless charging unlike the battery case for the iPhone 7. They also support Lighting accessories such as EarPods and Lighting Connector. Besides, these new smart battery cases display battery status on the iPhone’s lock screen and in the Notification Center giving users an idea about their handset’s battery.

January 15, 2019
VLC plans to bring AirPlay support soon, reaches 3 billion downloads

VLC announced two major milestones during the ongoing Consumer Electronics Show (CES 2019) in Las Vegas. The open-source video player confirmed that AirPlay suuport will soon arrive on VLC, allowing users to stream content from their iOS or Android device to their Apple TV. The feature will be the biggest addition in the upcoming version of VLC, since the addition of Chromecast support last summer.

VLC suggests that Air Play support could arrive for the primary VLC app in about a month for free. That said, they haven’t announced an exact release date yet.

“Just like with Chromecast, we intend to support AirPlay on any platform. There is no release date yet at all. We would like it to be part of VLC 4, which is the next major release we are currently working on. We will let you know in advance once we define a date”, said developers at VLC during CES 2019.

Apart from this, VLC also announced that the video-player app has finally reached a whopping 3 billion downloads. Now, this happens to be a moumnetal growth since May 2012 when the service reached one billion user downloads.

In addition, key sources also indicate that VLC plans to add native supoprt for VR content on the service. Besides, developers at VLC are also keen to bring the service to more platforms such as the PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and Roku.

January 11, 2019
Google gets rid of 85 malicious apps from the Play Store

Google has removed 85 dangerous apps from the PlayStore, after security experts found such apps to contain adware. According to researchers at TrendMicro, these apps were available on the Play Store as games, TV, and remote control simulator apps.

“This adware is capable of displaying full-screen ads, hiding itself, monitoring a device’s screen unlocking functionality, and running in the mobile device’s background,” explained the researchers at Trend Micro in the blog.

The report further notes that these malicious apps have witnessed over nine million downloads on the Android PlayStore. One of these apps, called ‘Easy Universal TV Remote’, was the most downloaded among the 85 malicious apps, with over 5 million downloads.

It’s also worth noting that these apps showed and shared the same source code, despite coming from different developers and different APK certificates. Once installed, as soon as the user launched these apps, a full-screen pop-up would appear asking users to perpetually press several buttons to continue.

Every button press would then open a new ad page, and this kept on happening until the app finally crashed. That said, they would still run in the background and suddenly show up after every hour or so on the device. For more information, click on the source link below.

Well, this isn’t the first time Google has removed malcious apps from the PlayStore. In November 2018, Google removed 13 malware-infested apps from the PlayStore. Back then, popular malware researcher researcher, Lukas Stefanko, found 13 malicious apps on the Play Store, which tricked users to install malware on their handsets.

Besides, Stefanko also found 29 other malicious apps on the PlayStore between August until early October 2018 in the Google Play store, which also masked themselves as authentic banking apps and used phishing forms to collect a user’s personal banking information.

January 9, 2019
Samsung Galaxy Note 9 starts receiving Android 9 Pie

Samsung has officially started rolling out the latest Android 9 Pie update for the Galaxy Note 9. Reports suggest that the rollout has kicked off in Germany, and there’s a good chance that more Galaxy Note 9 devices in other parts of the globe would follow suit.
The Android 9 Pie update for the Galaxy Note 9 comes as N960FXXU2CRLT. Besides, installing the update also brings the handset to the January 2019 security patch.

For now, Android 9 Pie update for the Galaxy Note 9 doesn’t seem to be available anywhere besides Germany. It’s also worth noting that the availabilty of Android 9 Piw update for the Note 9 could take longer than usual, as Samsung typically takes a long time to make the update available for everyone.

As something similar happened with the Galaxy S9 Android 9 Pie update also. The rollout started in late 2018, however, only limited countries across the world received the Android 9 Pie on the Galaxy S9. The rollout will liley continue throughout 2019.

Samsung is also busy planning the release of the next-gen Galaxy S10 series, which is expected to go official next month with Android 9 Pie out-of-the-box. Besides, Samsung is reportedly prepping Android Pie beta program for the Galaxy S8 as well, but details about that remain slim for the moment.

January 4, 2019
Netflix snubs iTunes for new user subscriptions

Netflix is no longer allowing users to subscribe to the streaming service via iTunes, the streaming giant has officially confirmed. The move will reportedly save the company over $250 million a year, and is going to cost Apple in excess of $250 million a year. With this change, new Netflix users with an iOS device will be required to subscribe for the service by directly visiting their official website.

“We no longer support iTunes as a method of payment for new members. Existing members, however, can continue to use iTunes as a method of payment,” ,” a Netflix spokesperson told VentureBeat.

Apple typically gets a 15 percent share if users pay for an app via the App store. While this may not sound a lot, but if you have thousands of users and subscribers worldwide, this small interest amounts to a lot of money.

It’s also worth noting that active users who’ve subcribed for Netflix through iTunes are not affected by this move. They can carry on using the service as they’ve been until now. It’s only new users, or someone who wants to reactivate their account will have to do so via the official Netflix website.

Netflix did the same thing with Google Play. Back in May, the company stopped allowing users to pay for the service via the Play Store. Interestingly, it’s not just Netflix who’s trying to avoid fees from Apple and Google.

Fortnite Developer Epic Games, has now launched its own dedicated store for PC and Mac users to avoid taxes from Apple. Besides, even music streaming service Spotify has ditched Apple. The music streaming giant now wants users to sign up for the service directly through Spotify, rather through iTunes or the AppStore to avoid fees Apple charges on subscriptions purchased through iOS.

January 2, 2019
Epic Games surprises Fortnite players on New Year’s eve

Epic Games has a special surpise for everyone playing Fortnite on New Year’s Eve. To celebrate new year around the world, Fortnite is offering an in-game live event, where gigantic disco balls appears on the map every hour.

Besides, the descending ball drop mimcs the same affect for players as the boogie bomb, implying that everyone playing Fortnite on New Year’s eve is dancing collectively every time the clock hits midnight. 2019 has already arrived in some parts of the world, however, the in-game virtual ball drop was a rather delightful surprise for everyone playing Fortnite tonight.

“Woke up to learn that many Fortnite players are unaware of time zones. We’re an educational and international game. Happy New Year to you if you’re already in 2019!”, tweeted Nick Chester, Epic’s PR spokesperson.

While 2018 was already a massive year for Fortnite, Epic Games also has huge plans for Fortnite in 2019. The publisher has promised to make single-player and co-op mode ‘Save the World’ free, instead of the paid addition it is for now.

Fornite is now available on the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC, Mac, iOS, and Android with cross-play support.

December 31, 2018
New PS5 and next-gen Xbox details revealed

While Sony and Microsoft have already confirmed they’ve begun work on the PS5 and the next-gen Xbox console, though we haven’t heard anything substantial so far. We’ve come across plenlty of leaks and rumours, though nothing concrete from the companies themselves. That said, developers and industry experts keep discussing about it giving us a good idea about what to expect. The latest information comes from Cradle Games technical director Marc-Andre Jutras, who recently had a brainstorming session with GamingBolt about to what to expect from next-gen consoles.

He suggests we won’t see a huge upgrade in RAM, as most games don’t require that much memory anyways. Instead, he stated that we might see an increase in processor cores.

“I don’t think we will see 16GB of RAM, most games don’t use that much RAM anyway. I think the next generation will be between 8 and 12, probably. What you will see however is probably a good amount of cores. I wouldn’t be surprised if the next gen was Ryzen 2600 or something like that. Because it is really stable, cheap, and has a good amount of cores,” said Jutras to GamingBolt.

He also spoke about what major changes in hardware we might see with upcoming consoles, which would be the focus on VRAM. He explained that 4K games need good amount of VRAM to buffer smoothly, unlike the PS4 which currently offers shared RAM space.

“So if you end up with a 4K buffer, you need four times the VRAM. So I think you will see, you won’t see shared RAM space next gen like you do with the PS4. I don’t think you will see that because it’s a big bottleneck. You’ll see more VRAM to support 4K and 5K and whatever else comes around. Just how much of that? I wouldn’t be surprised if the PS5 had 8GB of RAM and 8GB of VRAM,” he added.

It will intersting to see what Sony and Microsoft have to offer with their next-gen gaming consoles. That said, we’re bound to come across a barrge of rumors and speculations before the big reveal. We’ll update you as soon as we hear anything more. Until then, keep checking back for more.

December 29, 2018
Next-gen iPhone could pack Sony’s 3D camera sensors

Smartphone manufacturers have always tried to push the limits with smartphone cameras, but size constraints and other limitations have posed a roadblock for manufacturers. However, that could all change with the next-gen iPhone, as key sources suggest that Apple plans to equip the iPhone 11 with 3D sensing cameras.

According to a report by Bloomberg, Sony has increased the production of 3D camera units. The report further notes that Apple has shown keen interest in Sony’s next-generation camera sensors. These sensors will power both the front and rear facing cameras, and Sony plans to setup mass production of 3D sensors by next year to meet demand, the report adds.

The news comes directly from head of Sony’s sensor division, Satoshi Yoshihara, who stated during an interview with Bloomberg that 3D sensors business could have a major impact on Sony’s Q1 earnings next year.

Sony’s 3D camera uses a technology called TOF (time of flight), which essentially emits invisible laser beams and measures in how much they take to come back. This technology can be used to make advanced 3D models of objects, which can be used in augmented reality games as well as apps.

“Cameras revolutionized phones, and based on what I’ve seen, I have the same expectation for 3D. The pace will vary by field, but we’re definitely going to see adoption of 3D. I’m certain of it,” said Yoshihara in an interview with Bloomberg.

He also demonstrated a few examples of 3D camera sensors using a custom phone. In one app, the phone was able to calculate a room’s depth, while in another it allowed users to make hand gestures to cast magic spells in a virtual game.

Sony hasn’t revealed specifically which companies are eager to buy its 3D sensors, but Bloomberg suggests Apple is among them. This certainly make sense and lines up with earlier reports as well, which indicated Apple’s plans to invest heavily in augmented reality (AR).

December 28, 2018
Google removes millions of fake ratings and reviews from the Play Store

Google is obvioulsy irked by the increasing number of fake app reviews and ratings on the Play Store. However, it appears the company has finally taken stringent measures to combat fake reviews and improve authenticity on Google Play. The search engine giant has introduced a system that uses both AI and human insights to combat fake reviews and ratings on the Play Store.

“In 2018, the Google Play Trust & Safety teams deployed a system that combines human intelligence with machine learning to detect and enforce policy violations in ratings and reviews. A team of engineers and analysts closely monitor and study suspicious activities in Play’s ratings and reviews, and improve the model’s precision and recall on a regular basis. We also regularly ask skilled reviewers to check the decisions made by our models for quality assurance,” explained Fei Ye, software engineer at Google.

Google further adds that it has removed millions of fake ratings and reviews, along with thousands of apps that exhbhit such shady behavior. The search engine giant is essentially targeting a sudden surge in ratings, along with reviews that are hateful, vulgar, profane, or off-topic.

An example of incentivized ratings on the Play Store

Besides, Google urges developers to not run incentivized campaigns in order to improve Play Store ratings. “Don’t run campaigns, in-app or otherwise, like “Give us 5 stars and we’ll give you this in-app item!” That counts as incentivized ratings, and it’s prohibited by policy,” Google further adds in the blog post.

Finally, Google advises users to send feedback if they come across bad ratings and reviews on Google Play.Users can mark reviews as Spam if they sound hateful, gibberish, sexual, or profane.

December 18, 2018