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  • Samsung Galaxy S10 rumored to have an Edge variant

    Samsung Galaxy S10 rumored to have an Edge variant

    Samsung’s upcoming Galaxy S10 flagship is likely to have an Edge variant. As according to a new leak, the Korean manufacturer could bring back the Edge branding. Samsung dropped this naming scheme with the Galaxy S8 series.

    That said, it appears Samsung plans to resurrect the Edge branding. The Korean manufacturer is widely expected to launch three different versions of the flagship. There’ll be a base Galaxy S10 model with a 5.8-inch flat screen.

    The second model is likely to feature a larger 6.1-inch display, which according to the latest leak, could officially debut as the Galaxy S10 Edge. This variant of the flagship would feature curved screens, just like the Galaxy S9.

    Finally, the third variant of the flagship is being referred to as the Galaxy S10+, which is rumored to feature a 6.4-inch curved edge display.  That said, the Korean giant is expected to stick with the Plus branding on this model.

    There’ll be another variant of the flagship with 5G support, based on the Galaxy S10+. This particular model of the flagship is expected to release about a month later, following the release of the other three models.

    Samsung is expected to unveil the Galaxy S10 series sometime in February, likely before the MWC event. More details about the upcoming flagship 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.

  • After China, Apple could face iPhone sales ban in Germany

    After China, Apple could face iPhone sales ban in Germany

    After China, a German court has now ruled that all iPhone models since the iPhone 5s are infringing upon a Qualcomm patent. A sales ban will be imposed on Apple if the company does not appeal the German court’s ruling.

    According to a report by Reuetrs, Qualcomm is seeking a ban on iPhone models that run Intel chips. The court ruled that iPhones which feature a combination of chips from Intel and Apple supplier Qorvo infringe upon one of Qualcomm’s patents related to envelope tracking, a feature which essentially allows smartphones to save battery while sending and receiving wireless signals.

    The judge ruled that Apple should stop selling all iPhones models that run Intel modems in Germany. In response to the court’s ruling, Apple, as expected, retaliated with a fierce reponse.

    “Qualcomm’s campaign is a desperate attempt to distract from the real issues between our companies. Their tactics, in the courts and in their everyday business, are harming innovation and harming consumers. Qualcomm insists on charging exorbitant fees based on work they didn’t do, and they are being investigated by governments all around the world for their behavior. We are of course disappointed by this verdict, and we plan to appeal,” said Apple in a statement for CNBC.

    Apple and Qualcomm are engaged in a similar legal battle in China. A Chinese court issued a ban on iPhone sales in the country for violating Qualcomm patents. Apple was found to be infringing upon two patents as per the Chinese court’s ruling. These include a patent for changing and reformatting the size and appearance of photographs, and one for managing apps when viewing, navigating and dismissing apps using a touchscreen.

  • Qualcomm now pursuing ban on iPhone XS and iPhone XR

    Qualcomm now pursuing ban on iPhone XS and iPhone XR

    The legal spat between Apple and Qualcomm goes on. Last week, a Chinese court issued an order to ban sales of all iPhone models in the country since the iPhone 6s upto the iPhone X. Now, it appears Qualcomm is seeking a ban on the newly launched iPhone XS and iPhone XR as well.

    In an interview with Bloomberg, Qualcomm’s general counsel Don Rosenberg stated that the only reason why the newly launched iPhone range were not impacted by the court’s ruling, is because they weren’t launched at the time of the appeal.

    “It affects older iPhones. It affects the iPhone 6s right through the X, and the only reason it doesn’t apply at the moment to the later devices is because when we brought the suit they didn’t exist. The new models will be coming very soon. We are already in the process of seeking an order covering the new models as well,” said Rosenberg.

    To recall, a Chinese court issued a ban on iPhone sales in the country for violating Qualcomm patents. Apple was found to be infringing upon two patents as per the Chinese court’s ruling. These include a patent for changing and reformatting the size and appearance of photographs, and one for managing apps when viewing, navigating and dismissing apps using a touchscreen.

    Apple still selling iPhones in China

    Following the court’s ruling, Apple announced it would address the issue with an iOS update, which began rolling out on Monday. However, Qualcomm says that Apple should take the court order seriously and stop selling iPhones in China.

    “It should’ve been taken a bite and it should take a bite of Apple sales right now in China. The order requires them to stop selling, stop offering for sale, and stop importing any devices between these model numbers I suggested,” further added Rosenberg.

    Despite the court’s ruling, Apple is still selling iPhone models in China. The Cupertino-based company says that the latest iOS 12.1.2 update addresses the alleged patent violations.

  • Windows 10 October 2018 update now available for all

    Windows 10 October 2018 update now available for all

    Microsoft has finally resolved several bugs that stopped some Windows 10 users from downloading the latest Windows 10 October 2018 update. The update is now available for everyone to download via Windows Update. In an update on its support page, Microsoft confirmed that ‘Windows 10, version 1809, is now fully available for advanced users who manually select ‘Check for Updates’ via Windows Update.

    You can now download and install Windows 10 version 1809 on your system by heading over to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update > Check for updates.

    The availability comes more than two months after Microsoft orignally released the October 2018 update. Besides, the software giant had to re-release the update last month after a file deletion issue eventually led Microsoft to halt the rollout.

    Following which, Microsoft opted for a slower rollout to ensure a smoother update experience for all PCs. In the wake of this, the company also prevented the manual download option from Windows Update, even for systems that were fully compatible. Since then, Microsoft has been working to ensure that all PCs get this update, though it was blocked on systems that were found incompatible.

    “If we detect that your device may have an issue, such as an application incompatibility, we will not install the update until that issue is resolved, even if you ‘Check for updates,’ so you avoid encountering any related problems,” explained Microsoft.

    After a buggy year of updates, Microsoft plans to now focus on the quality of updates in Windows 10. The Windows-maker also promised it’ll make sure such glitches don’t happen with forthcoming Windows 10 updates. The company says it’ll pay more attention to the quality of updates it offers to Windows 10 users in the future.

  • Google removes millions of fake ratings and reviews from the Play Store

    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.

    Play Store
    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.

  • Lenovo Z5 Pro GT with Snapdragon 855, 12GB RAM goes official

    Lenovo Z5 Pro GT with Snapdragon 855, 12GB RAM goes official

    The Lenovo Z5 Pro GT has been officially unveiled. It’s the first flagship to feature Snapdragon 855 and a whopping 12GB of RAM. For now, the handset is only expected to launch in the Chinese market some time next year at a price tag of 4389 yuan ($638). Pricing and availabilty details for other markets haven’t been revealed so far.

    Lenovo is also offering other RAM and storage configurations for the Z5 Pro. The base model comes with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of on-board storage, which gets a price tag of 2698 yuan ($390 approx.) Besides, Lenovo will even sell a more affordable version of the handset, featuring Snapdragon 710 processor paired with 6GB of RAM and 64GB of storage.

    As with most modern day flagships, the Lenovo Z5 Pro sports an all-screen design, however, does not sport a notch unlike most 2018 Android flagships. The reason being that Lenovo has opted for a motorized camera mechanism which houses the 16MP selfie cam and the 8MP infrared camera. On the back, the smartphone packs a 24MP and 16MP dual-lens camera.

    As far as OS goes, the handset runs Android 9 Pie out-of-the-box with Lenovo’s UI on top.

    Other notable features include a 6.39-inch OLED screen, Bluetooth 5.0, Wi-Fi, dual-SIM support, and a 3350 mAh battery. It also comes with a fifth-gen fingerprint scanner. However, there’s no suport for wireless charging. Also, the Lenovo Z5 Pro misses the classic 3.5mm headphone jack, neither does it get support for wireless charging. It comes with a USB Type-C port for charging and listening to audio.

  • iOS 12.1.2 update starts rolling out, fixes the eSIM bug

    iOS 12.1.2 update starts rolling out, fixes the eSIM bug

    Apple starts rolling out the new iOS 12.1.2 update for compatible iPhones. The latest iOS update is primarily aimed at fixing the eSIM activation bug for the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and the iPhone XR.

    To recall, eSIM functionality first arrived with iOS 12.1. All major carriers in the US such as Verizon, T Mobile, as well as AT&T are now supporting this feature. Apart from addressing issues with eSIM activation, the update also fixes an issue that could impact cellular connectivity in Turkey for Apple’s 2018 iPhone line-up.

    According to Apple’s release notes:

    iOS 12.1.2 includes bug fixes for your iPhone. This update includes:

    • Fixes bugs with eSIM activation for iPhone XR, iPhone XS, and iPhone XS Max
    • Addresses an issue that could affect cellular connectivity in Turkey for iPhone XR, iPhone XS, and iPhone XS Max

    The latest iOS 12.1.2 update could also include software tweaks for the Chinese market to negate Qualcomm’s patents. A court recently issued a ban on iPhone sales in China as Apple was found to infringe on two of Qualcomm’s patents. These include a patent for changing and reformatting the size and appearance of photographs, and one for managing apps when viewing, navigating and dismissing apps using a touchscreen.

    However, Apple said it would roll out an iOS update specifically to neutralize the ban imposed on iPhone sales in China. The Cupertino giant also added that the update will directly address patent violation claims made by Qualcomm.

    How to download iOS 12.1.2 on your iPhone

    To download the latest update, just head over to the Settings Menu. To check the update, go to Settings> General> Software Update. As with all iOS updates, iOS 12.1.2 is available as an over-the-air update and is free to download.

  • Street Fighter V gets a new character, new balance patch also available

    Street Fighter V gets a new character, new balance patch also available

    Capcom has added, Kage, a new character in Street Fighter V. Kage is inspired by both Ryu and Evil Ryu, as his move set is rather similar to both of them. The character is now available in the game along with the new balance patch.

    “Kage, the Embodiment of the Satsui, rises in Street Fighter V: Arcade Edition. Available now! Manifesting due to Ryu’s rejection of the Satsui no Hado, Kage hungers for power to prove Ryu is nothing without him,” reads the official character description. You can check out Kage’s reveal trailer below:

    As far as balance patch is concerned, it’s a rather big patch which brings changes for several characters in Street Fighter V. For more information about the patch, head over to Capcom’s official website by clicking the source link below.

    Elsewhere, Capcom also responded to complaints over Street Fighter V’s in-game advertisements. The publisher introduced Sponsored Content in an update last week, which brings advertising to numerous stages, loading screens, as well as character models. In the wake of this, users took to social media and platforms like Reddit to express their concerns.

    Capcom has now finally given a response via the official Twitter feed. “We value and thank our community for providing feedback on the new Sponsored Content feature added to Street Fighter V: Arcade Edition this week. We will continue collecting everyone’s feedback to consider how we can improve this new feature for players in the future,” wrote executive producer Yoshinoro Ono.

    However, going by Capcom’s response, it appears the publisher has no plans to remove in-game advertisements from Street Fighter V.

  • Galaxy S10 live photo allegedly spotted ahead of launch

    Galaxy S10 live photo allegedly spotted ahead of launch

    Samsung is expected to unveil the Galaxy S10 series in a few weeks, and alleged leaks of the handset keep coming as we near its official release. Today, a live photo of the Galaxy S10 is allegedly doing rounds on the web, giving us a fairly good idea about the flagship’s design.

    A report by Wccftech has purportedly leaked an image which shows a hole on the handset’s display near the top right corner, indicating the place where the front-facing camera and other components will be housed. Samsung is expected use Infinity O displays on the upcoming Galaxy S10, and this new design element will allow Samsung to hide the front-facing components of the handset within the display.

    Galaxy S10 live photo

    Samsung could launch three to four variants of the Galaxy S10

    Samsung is widely expected to announce three to four variants of the upcoming Galaxy S10 featuring different camera configurations. And the model shown in the leaked photo shows a single-lens front facing shooter. Hence, there’s a chance this could be Galaxy S10’s base model, also referred to as the Galaxy S10 Lite, which rumoured to feature a 5.8-inch flat screen and a dual-lens primary camera setup.

    It also appears the handset will feature rather small bezels at the top of the screen. Besides, the leak also suggests the Galaxy S10 will not have a notch, which should be good news for fans, as this design element has received mixed responses from smartphone users around the globe.

    The latest leak does fall in line with earlier reports of the handset. That said, readers should take this information with pinch of salt as nothing is official at the moment. More leaks about the Galaxy S10 are likely to surface before its official release. We can even expect official press renders to leak out ahead of launch, as they did in the past. We’ll update you as soon as we hear anything new. Until then, keep checking back for more.

  • Apple Music finally arrives on Amazon Echo speakers

    Apple Music finally arrives on Amazon Echo speakers

    Apple Music support has finally arrived on Amazon Echo spekaers in the United States via the Alexa app on Android and iOS. Users can now sync their Apple Music account with Echo speakers via the Alexa app and enjoy Apple’s streaming service using Alexa voice control. The iPhone-maker’s streaming service now joins the likes of Spotify, Pandora, iHeartRadio, as well as Amazon’s own music service on Alexa devices.

    Apple Music subscribers can set the service as their default music service on Alexa. Now, this essentially lets you play songs directly via Apple’s music service without having to tell Alexa which service to use every time.

    There are some HomePod feaures that Apple Music misses on Alexa. That said, the integration of Apple’s music streaming service with Alexa is a great addition for Echo users. They can control playback on Alexa, and even play Apple Music on speaker groups created using the Alexa app. Besides, users can also set alarms to music on Echo speakers.

    For now, Apple’s music streaming service is only supported by Echo speakers, therefore, you cannot control the service with Alexa on speakers like Sonos, even if they offer support for the iPhone-maker’s service.

    To recall , Amazon recently signed a new deal with Apple to sell Cupertino’s latest products such as iPhone XS and iPhone XR via its online store. That said, Amazon will not sell Apple’s HomePod speaker through its ecommerce store, as it directly competes with Amazon’s own smart speakers. Not to mention, Amazon also doesn’t sell Google’s Home devices on its platform.

    Have you tried Apple Music with your Amazon Echo speakers yet? Do let us know in the comments below

  • Facebook bug exposes photos of 6.8 million users

    Facebook bug exposes photos of 6.8 million users

    Facebook has officially announced that a bug on its network has exposed photos of 6.8 million users without their consent. The social network states that a photo API bug gave third-party app developers access to users’ photos they may not have publically shared.

    “Photos that users started to upload to Facebook but did not post could have been accessed, along with images posted to Facebook Stories. We’re sorry this happened,” wrote Tomer Bar, an engineering director at Facebook, in a blog post.

    According to Facebook, photos could have been accessed by 1500 apps created by 876 developers as a result of this bug. Next week, the company plans to offer tools for app developers which will allow them to find users that may have been impacted by the bug.

    Besides, the company added it will notify users who may been affected by the bug through a Facebook notification that will redirect them to the Help Centre. You can find a mock-up of that notification in the image below:

    facebook bug

    “Currently, we believe this may have affected up to 6.8 million users and up to 1,500 apps built by 876 developers. The only apps affected by this bug were ones that Facebook approved to access the photos API and that individuals had authorized to access their photos,” further explained Facebook.

    Facebook added that the bug was live for 12 days from September 13th to September 25th. The company said it discovered the bug on September 25th, and informed the Office of Data Protection Commissioner (IDPC) on November 22nd.

    As to why they waited so long to disclose the bug, Facebook reportedly said that it took time to investigate the issue and find out how many users were affected.

    For now, Facebook recommends users to log into any apps with which they might’ve shared their Facebook photos with to find out which photos they’ve gained access.

  • Apple plans to release iOS update to evade iPhone ban in China

    Apple plans to release iOS update to evade iPhone ban in China

    Apple plans to roll out an iOS update specifically to evade the ban imposed on iPhone sales in China. The Cupertino giant announced that the update directly addresses patent violations claim made by Qualcomm.

    Earlier this week, a Chinese court issued a ban on sale of all iPhone models in the country, since the iPhone 6s. The court found Apple to be infringing upon two separate Qualcomm patents.

    However, Apple says it won’t stop selling iPhones in China despite the alleged patent violation. The Cupertino giant claims that such patent-infringement claims are only limited to older versions of iOS, and the latest iOS update no longer breaches these patent claims.

    Apple is now reporteldy planning to roll out a software update next week, and it appears iPhones running older versions of iOS may be specifically targeted by the new update.

    “Based on the iPhone models we offer today in China, we believe we are in compliance. Early next week we will deliver a software update for iPhone users in China addressing the minor functionality of the two patents at issue in the case,” Apple said in a statement to Reuters.

    Specific details about the update remain slim for now, however, Apple is likley to reveal more information by next week when it rolls out the update.

    As per the ruling by Chinese court, iPhone models that breach Qualcomm patents include the iPhone X, iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, and the iPhone 6s. That said, Qualcomm suggests it’s looking into more such patent infringement claims on the new iPhone Xs and iPhone Xr.

    The legal spat between Apple and Qualcomm goes on. And from the looks of it, we aren’t going to see the two tech giants come to a mutual agreement.

  • New Samsung Galaxy S10 leak reveals prices of all variants

    New Samsung Galaxy S10 leak reveals prices of all variants

    Rumors about the upcoming Galaxy S10 are flying thick and fast. Samsung is widely expected to announce three to four variants of the Galaxy S10 in early 2019. Now, a new report from Gizmodo suggests the flagship might be unveiled just before MWC 2019, while pre-orders could begin starting Februry 20, 2019. The report further notes that the Galaxy S10 could start shipping on March 8, 2019.

    As already mentioned, Samsung could launch three to four models of the Galaxy S10. All models of the flagship are likley to pack Infinity O displays. The screen on the upcoming Galaxy flagship has a hole near the top, which houses components such as front-facing camera.

    Besides, the report has allegedly revealed the prices of all upcoming Galaxy S10 models which you can find below:

    • Galaxy S10 (5.8-inch) 128 GB storage – ($850)
    • Galaxy S10 (6.1-inch) 128 GB storage – ($1,000)
    • Galaxy S10 (6.1-inch) 512 GB storage – ($1,250)
    • Galaxy S10+ (6.4-inch) 128 GB storage -($1,130)
    • Galaxy S10+ (6.4-inch) 512 GB storage -($1,390)
    • Galaxy S10+ (6.4-inch) 1 TB storage – ($1,760)

    Finally, the report also notes that the Korean manufacturer could launch a 5G variant of the Galaxy S10+ at a later date. Past leaks have tipped that this particular model could feature a total of six cameras.

    Besides, the upcoming Galaxy S10 will likely have two variants when it comes to processors, an Exynos 9820 model and a Snapdragon 855 variant. Qualcomm recently unveiled its next gen flagship mobile processor, the Snapdragon 855, and the Galaxy S10 with this processor will be launched in the United States.

    More Galaxy S10 leaks 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.

  • Intel unveils next-generation Sunny Cove microprocessor architecture

    Intel unveils next-generation Sunny Cove microprocessor architecture

    Intel has announced its next-generation microprocessor architecture, dubbed as Sunny Cove. According to the company, this new architecture is designed to improve performance per clock as well as power efficiency for general computing tasks. The new Sunny Cove architecture is built using a 10nm process, and the next-generation Core and Xeon processors will be built around it.

    Intel claims Sunny Cove architecture can execute more instructions in parallel, with new algorithms to reduce latency, as well as increased key buffer and cache sizes to optimize heavy workloads.

    The company also unveiled the new Gen 11 integrated graphics, claimed to offer up to 2x performace improvements over Gen 9 graphics coupled with Skylake-based chipsets. Besides, Gen 11 graphics are also equipped to support 4K video streams and 8K content creation, even under restrained power environments. They also feature Intel’s Adaptive Sync technology for a smooth and immersive gaming experience. Besides, Intel also announced its plan to provide a discrete graphics processor by 2020, but did not reveal any further details.

    Finally, Intel also announced the use of 3D stacking of logic chips. The company touts it as an industry first technology, which essentially allows logic-on-logic integration between layers. Put simply, 3D stacking of logic chips would allow manufacturers to pack the processor into much tighter spaces, thereby freeing up area for other PC components.

    Intel’s had a rough year so far. They’ve had to fire their former CEO, Brian Krzanich, over violating the company’s policies. Besides, Intel has also been hit by low sales numbers compared to its rivals. Not to mention, they’ve been stuck with the Skylake microarchitecture since 2015. That said, it appears the company has finally come up with something new and exciting for its next-generation processors with Sunny Cove.

  • Apple Music subscribers can get the HomePod at a lower price

    Apple Music subscribers can get the HomePod at a lower price

    Apple is now offering promo codes to Apple Music subscribers that gives them a chance to buy HomePod at a discounted price. That said, it’s a holiday-themed promotion and is available for a limited period of time only.

    As of now, customers in the UK have received codes worth £50, which brings down the price of the HomePod to £269. Apple is sending emails to users who’ve tried Apple Music. These emails contain a button style link which includes the promo code, and users redirected to the official Apple website with the promotional offer applied.

    Preliminary reports indicate that only customers in the UK have received such promo codes. These codes are valid only until December 16, so you only have a couple of days to take advantage of the deal.

    Besides, even if you get the promo code from a friend of yours, the code will most likely be accepted during checkout at the Apple Store. Not to mention, users shouldn’t worry about a phishing attack if they receive an email from Apple asking to ‘Get Your Promo Code’, as it’s a legitimate email.

    However, at the time of wriitng, it’s still unclear whether similar offers will be available in other regions across th globe. We’ll update this article as soon as we hear anything new. Until then, keep checking back for more.