Tech news today: August 2018

Friday, August 31, 2018

Ola Announces Think Tank for Mobility Research APP_NEWS

The Ola Mobility Institute will focus on the impact of mobility as a service, climate footprint, skill development, and job creation.

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Russia Tries More Precise Technology to Block Telegram Messenger APP_NEWS

Russia's authorities started trying to block Telegram in April but they inadvertently blocked Russian users' access to a slew of unrelated online services.

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UK Foreign Minister Attacks Google Over 'Child Abuse Content'

The British government has repeatedly criticised online platforms such as Twitter, YouTube and Facebook for failing to remove abusive material or sexual content.

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Diablo Series in the Works at Netflix With Hellboy Co-Writer: Report

Netflix is developing a new original series based on Blizzard's video game series Diablo, with Syfy's Eureka co-creator Andrew Cosby attached as writer, if a new report is to be believed.

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Everything You Need to Know About Spider-Man on PS4

The new Spider-Man game is out the first week of September on PS4. From release date to download size, here's everything you need to know about the upcoming Spider-Man title.

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Huawei Mate 20 Lite launches in the UK android os

Mid-tier member of new Mate family goes on sale in the UK next week.

We won't have much longer to wait for the Huawei Mate 20, and in the run up to the new flagship's arrival, Huawei UK has today unveiled the mid-tier "Lite" entry in the series. The Huawei Mate 20 Lite hits all the major feature beats of the Mate series, with a big screen, dual cameras and a gigantic battery, while arriving at a more affordable price point of £379 SIM-free.

As well as a stylish glass-backed chassis with Mate 10-style accents, the phone features a 6.3-inch notched Full HD+ LTPS display with svelte bezels and a relatively slim profile of 7.6mm. It's powered by Huawei's mid-tier Kirin 710 processor, with 4GB of RAM and a base 64GB of storage, upgradeable via microSD. It's running version 8.2 of Huawei's EMUI software atop Android 8.1 Oreo -- an interim step between the familiar EMUI 8.1 and the upcoming EMUI 9. In terms of visuals and performance, 8.2 is pretty much identical to what we've seen on countless Huawei devices over the past year.

Although the Kirin 710 chip doesn't include a NPU (neural processing unit), Huawei has ported across most of the AI features of the higher-priced Mate phones, including AI battery enhancements and object and scene recognition within the stock Gallery app. There's also AI scene detection is supported in the camera, along with Huawei's 3D portrait lighting and 3D emoji features. So the full feature set of Huawei camera features is present, even though the camera hardware is a little weaker than what you'd find in a flagship. (There's a 20-megapixel f/1.8 unit around the back, paired with a 2-megapixel depth-sensing secondary camera.)

At least battery life should be strong, ith a 3,750mAh cell powering the Mate 20 Lite. And that ample capacity doesn't come at the expense of ports -- unlike other Huawei phones, there's a 3.5mm headphone jack included, and Huawei's HiSten audio tuning technology.

As for what you don't get: There's no water resistance spec listed, and you'll have to make do with 9V quick charging as opposed to Huawei's faster SuperCharge tech.

Huawei Mate 20 Lite specs

Category	Features
Size	158.3mm x 75.3mm x 7.6mm
Display	6.3-inch LTPS, FHD+ resolution 1080 x 2340 (19.5:9)
Weight	172 grams
Processor	Huawei Kirin 710 (4xA73 @ 2.2GHz + 4xA53 @ 1.7GHz)
RAM	4GB
Storage	64GB + SD up to 256GB
Battery	3750mAh
Audio	Dual microphone noise reduction, Huawei HiSten Sound Algorithm, Bluetooth 4.2
Rear Cameras	20MP (f/1.8) + 2MP
Front Camera	24MP Fusion Pixel (f/2.0) + 2MP
Wi-Fi	802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, 2.4/5G, Wi-Fi Direct
Sensors	Fingerprint, Proximity, Ambient light sensor, Digital compass, Gyroscope, Acceleration sensor, Hall sensor (SNE-LX1 only)
Software	Android 8.1, EMUI 8.2

The Huawei Mate 20 Lite will arrive on Vodafone and at Carphone Warehouse from September 25, with EE following in October.

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The Huawei AI Cube is an Amazon Alexa-powered 4G ... cylinder android os

Geometry is hard.

At IFA 2018 in Berlin, Huawei has taken the wraps off its latest connected home device, the Huawei AI Cube. It's equipped with Amazon's Alexa, includes a powerful speaker and 4G connectivity, and is not a cube.

That's right, the Huawei AI Cube is actually a cylinder. Let's take a second to deal with that and move on. Here it is:

Physically, the Huawei AI Cube is shaped like an elongated Google Home, complete with fuzzy speaker grille down below, and a section that lights up when interacting via voice. But it manages to pack in a bit more functionality than Google's gadget, including a fully-fledged LTE modem/router and a larger speaker chamber that should justify what'll likely be a price tag far beyond entry-level smart speakers. A 15-watt speaker provides ample oomph for music playback, backed up by Huawei's HiSten software for faithful audio reproduction. Meanwhile, four far-field mics help Amazon's Alexa assistant respond to your commands.

Huawei isn't promoting any unique Alexa skills in this particular speaker, however the AI branding is clearly intended to gel with Huawei's other ventures into artificial intelligence, like its AI-equipped smartphone hardware. Nevertheless, all the usual Alexa commands around smart home control and media playback should work just fine, assuming you're in a supported region.

The AI Cube can also work as a mobile router, though since there's no built-in battery you'll still need to be within cord reach of a power outlet. Huawei claims cellular data speeds of up to 300Mbps, with Wi-Fi throughput up to 1200Mbps over 802.11ac.

The Huawei AI Cube will roll its way onto European store shelves in time for the holidays.

Alongside the AI Cube, Huawei also showcased a new cellular-connected tracking device, the Huawei Locator. Designed with kids, pets or luggage in mind, the fob-sized gadget can stay connected for up to 15 days per charge. The tracker features IP68-rated water and dust resistance, and can be tracked across international borders thanks to its global roaming support.

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Huawei has four wild new P20 Pro colors, including leather backs android os

Morpho Aurora!

Even as we enter the Huawei Mate 20 hype season, Huawei hasn't forgotten the P20 Pro. With its twilight gradient color option, the P20 was by far its best-looking flagship in years, and now there are fresh hues coming to that phone, along with the return of a smartphone trend we haven't seen since 2015.

The most striking new gradient pattern goes by the name morpho aurora, and is apparently named for the morpho butterfly. At certain angles, the morpho aurora P20 Pro appears almost pitch black. Viewed head-on in the right light, you'll see a rainbow pattern with sunset hues, similar to the twilight P20 Pro, but with an additional splash or orange and yellow.

The new Mother of Pearl hue has a subtle color-shifting effect similar to the white gold version of the regular Huawei P20. This version isn't as obviously iridescent as the other shades, but it has a clean, understated look. With its copper-hued trim, it's a little reminiscent of the white OnePlus 6.

That's not all, though. Remember when leather-backed phones were a thing? Huawei's bringing back this smartphone trend with black and brown P20 options clad in genuine leather. Like the LG G4 and Moto X2, the front and sides are unchanged, but the back swaps out shatter and scratch-prone glass for a more durable material. That said, it remains to be seen how well the leather P20s will age — that was a point of contention with many leather handsets in years past.

The phone on the inside hasn't changed, though. The Huawei P20 Pro remains the best Android phones for low-light photography, as well as an impressive performer with multi-day battery life.

Huawei P20 + P20 Pro

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Huawei Mate 20 series will launch October 16 with next-gen Kirin 980 chip android os

First 7nm smartphone processor will power next flagship, which will land at a London launch event on October 16.

Huawei won't fully unveil its next flagship smartphone for another month or so, but the first details around the Mate 20 are starting to trickle out from IFA 2018 in Berlin. First, the Mate 20 series is confirmed for an October 16 2018 launch. Second, it'll be the first phone to run Huawei's next-generation Kirin 980 processor. And thanks to the details revealed about that chip, we can extrapolate a couple of new features of the phone itself.

The Mate 20 launch event is set for October in London — the first time Huawei has held a launch event for a Mate device in the UK. Huawei Marketing VP Benjamin Wang confirmed the details in a meeting with Android Central ahead of today's announcement. As in previous years, the new Mate will be the first device to use the new Kirin SoC from Huawei's in-house semiconductor company.

7nm process, Cortex-A76, Cat. 21 LTE, Mali-G76 graphics and a new dual NPU.

Kirin 980 will boast a number of firsts in a smartphone processor. Most significantly, it's based on a 7nm manufacturing process, in partnership with TSMC, potentially giving a power and performance edge over current 10nm chips from Qualcomm and Samsung. It's also the first smartphone chip to use ARM's Cortex-A76 cores, a chip which its designer claims can offer laptop-level performance. And for graphical number-crunching, Kirin 980 is first with ARM's new Mali-G76 GPU — though Huawei isn't yet confirming how many GPU cores are used in the new SoC.

Other bragging rights include the first 1.4Gbps Cat. 21 LTE modem, the first smartphone platform to use 2133MHz LPDDR4 memory, Huawei's fourth-generation dual ISP (image signal processor), and a new dual NPU (neural processing unit) which should enable even more advanced AI features in the Mate 20.

Compared to the Kirin 970 used in Huawei's P20 and Mate 10 series, the new platform boasts a 20% performance improvement and 40% reduction in power consumption. Cores are arranged in a big.LITTLE configuration with three clusters: four low-powered Cortex-A55 cores at 1.8GHz, four mid-level Cortex-A76 cores at 1.92GHz, and two high-powered A76s at 2.6GHz. Huawei's flexible scheduler allows for the best combination of "big," "middle," and "little" cores to be used for the task at hand.

The CPU is only part of the equation, though. Huawei has made improvements across all areas of the SoC, and in a meeting ahead of today's launch event offered a scoresheet of performance and power efficiency improvements compared to last year's Kirin 970, and the current Qualcomm standard-bearer, the Snapdragon 845.

The new Mali-G76 GPU offers 46% faster performance, with 178% improvement in efficiency compared to Kirin 970's Mali-G72 GPU.
Game performance is up 22%, with a 32% reduction in power consumption compared to Snapdragon 845.
The new, faster LPDDR4 memory improves bandwidth by 20% and reduced latency by 22% compared to Snapdragon 845.
The fourth-generation dual ISP brings a 46% increase in processing speed, a 23% bump in power efficiency and 33% recording latency improvement.
The new dual NPU boasts an image recognition score of 4,500 pics per second, compared to 2371 for Snapdragon 845 and 1458 for Apple's A11 chip.
The new Cat. 21 LTE modem boasts better connectivity in challenging environments like metro and high-speed rail, while bringing peak Wi-Fi speeds up to 1732Mbps.
Dual-frequency GPS support allows for up to 10X better location accuracy.

The obvious takeaway is that everything should be faster and better than the previous generation of Kirin chips, with even better battery life. What's more, some of the NPU and ISP specs offer further clues about the Mate 20's performance and feature set. Processing improvements in the ISP should allow the phone to pull sharper details and improved dynamic range out of whatever camera system is fitted, meaning that even if the hardware hasn't changed much compared to the P20 Pro, we'll likely see further improvements in color and fine detail compared to that device. And Huawei specifically called out the new dual NPU's ability to recognize more granular details in images and videos, meaning AI video shooting modes could also be on the horizon.

With the Kirin 980 and its upcoming Mate 20 handsets, it's clear Huawei is keeping up the pace of technological advancement, and the result, once it's unveiled in just over a month, should be a powerhouse of a phone.

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Do you plan on getting a Pixel 3 or 3 XL? android os

Which Google phone will be getting your dollars this fall?

It's no surprise by now that Google will be launching two new phones this year — the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3l XL.

The latter of those two phones has been leaked to death, and just yesterday, we saw our first batch of hands-on photos for the former. We have a pretty good idea of what to expect from both handsets now, meaning all we have to do is wait for Google to finally unveil pricing and availability info.

It's safe to say some potential buyers already know which phone will be getting their dollars based on how many leaks we've seen, and looking through the AC forums, people seem to be split down the middle.

bbycrts

08-24-2018 02:41 PM

“

Definitely - not an XL, a regular 3.
Reply

DMP89145

08-24-2018 03:04 PM

“

I'll make it 3 years in a row and pick up a standard Pixel 3, for sure.
Reply

Benjamin Wilkinson

08-27-2018 09:21 AM

“

I'm planning on getting an XL. Looks pretty impressive from the leaks and my Nexus 6P is getting a bit old
Reply

TheDonJ77

08-28-2018 09:53 PM

“

I'm pretty sure I'll be buying the P3XL. No real issues at all with my P2XL but if Google is gonna do the same as last year with 4-450 trade in promos, I'm in. Might not be a day one purchase but I'll be getting it none the less
Reply

What about you? Will you be getting the Pixel 3 or Pixel 3 XL?

Join the conversation in the forums!

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Tencent Loses $20 Billion in Value After China Attacks Myopia With Gaming Curbs APP_NEWS

China's Ministry of Education, in a notice late on Thursday, directed the publishing regulator to limit the number of new online video games.

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Are planar magnetic headphones worth the higher cost? android os

Best answer: Planar magnetic headphones are more expensive than their dynamic driver cousins, but the better sound quality will surely be worth it. If you don't want to spend too much, the HIFIMAN HE-400I are a great pair for a decent price. For a bit more money, the new Audeze Mobius headphones offer more features like Bluetooth connectivity.

Amazon: HIFIMAN HE-400I ($189)
Audeze: Audeze Mobius ($400)

Headphones are easy to understand on the surface: plug them into the aux jack or connect them via Bluetooth, and you get your sweet music in your ears. That's true of any headphones, but if you want to dive into the rabbit hole you can.

One category you may have heard of in the last few years are planar magnetic headphones. The first thing you may notice about them is their higher price. If you've ever listened to a pair of planar magnetic headphones, you probably noticed a more pleasant sound.

What about my regular headphones?

Almost all lower-end headphones — from the $10 pair at your grocery store checkout to more expensive sets like the Bose QC35 — use what are known as dynamic drivers. If you've ever had big speakers and seen the driver actually move back and forth, you've seen a dynamic driver. Dynamic drivers can be as big as those giant speakers need them to be, or small enough to fit inside tiny earbuds.

Think of sound as a wave: the dynamic driver physically moves back and forth to produce a wave of sound that hits your ears. The driver is made of three basic parts: a magnet, a coiled wire, and a diaphragm. The magnet is fixed in place, and the coil sits between the magnet and the diaphragm. When power goes to the drivers, the magnet moves the coil back and forth, which causes the diaphragm to move back and forth to create sound.

So what's special about planar magnetic headphones?

Planar magnetic headphones work a bit differently. Instead of having a magnet and coil, a fixed piece of flexible film sits inside the driver. Magnets sit in front of and behind this film, and thin wires go through the film. To move the driver and produce sound, the headphones send a current through those thin wires. This makes the film magnetic, and the permanent magnets in front of and behind the film move the film back and forth to produce sound.

While planar magnetic headphones have traditionally been over- or on-ear headphones, RHA announced its first pair of planar magnetic earbuds and Audeze also offers planar magnetic earbuds.

What does this mean to me?

All that may be fascinating to read, but the important pieces are what the differences are between dynamic and planar magnetic headphones. Generally planar magnetic headphones:

Use more power
Cost more to produce, meaning they cost more to buy
Sound noticeably better

The power factor is definitely something to keep in mind. The first Bluetooth planar magnetic headphones — the Audeze Mobius — were just released. Those headphones have a 10-hour battery life, where dynamic headphones that are about the same size often get 20+ hours of battery. If you're using wired planar magnetic headphones, you'll want to use them with a desktop or USB amplifier to get the most out of the headphones.

Are they worth it?

Everyone has different ears, different tastes and different budgets. If you haven't listened to a pair of planar magnetic headphones, do it. The technology is getting cheaper all the time: the HIFIMAN HE-400I headphones go for $189, right in line with dynamic driver headphones from Bose and Sony.

Our pick

HIFIMAN HE-400i

$189 at Amazon

If you want planar magnetic headphones that don't break the bank, the HIFIMAN HE-400I headphones are for you.

If you're curious about planar magnetic headphones, don't go all out with a thousand-dollar pair of cans. HIFIMAN's HE-400I headphones are over-ear headphones with a flexible band and plush ear cushion for hours of comfortable music listening. These are wired headphones, with a removable 3.5mm cable that fits into either ear cup.

An upgrade option

Audeze Mobius

$400 at Audeze

For a bit more money, you get some serious features from Audeze.

If you need your headphones to have Bluetooth connectivity, boom mic, and some other higher-end features, Audeze has you covered. Its new Mobius headphones connect your phone with a 3.5mm jack, USB-C cord or over Bluetooth. That Bluetooth connection uses the LDAC codec, which means your music will sound just as good over Bluetooth as it would over a wire. The 10-hour battery life is enough to get you through the day, and with USB-C you can charge the headphones with the same cable that you use for your phone and laptop.

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Tencent Loses Billions in Value After China Unveils New Gaming Curbs

China's Ministry of Education, in a notice late on Thursday, directed the publishing regulator to limit the number of new online video games.

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Lenovo Ideapad 530S Review

The Lenovo Ideapad 530S is a premium thin and light laptop that performs well, but how does it compare to the MacBook Air? We review to find out.

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Sony Xperia XZ3 First Impressions

Sony has given its latest flagship, the Xperia XZ3, a major facelift. Will that be enough to make it a serious contender? Here are some early thoughts.

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Best Buy's Labor Day sale brings big discounts to iPad, TVs, and more android os

A few days left to save!

Best Buy has launched its Labor Day sale which runs now through the end of Monday and brings big discounts on a variety of products. Whether you're looking for a new iPad, Jabra's Elite 65t wireless ear buds, or a new TV, there's something here for just about everyone. Some of our favorites from this site-wide sale include:

In addition to these discounts, students can save even more. Eligible students who have registered for the promotions can stack extra savings on top of the already-discounted pricing. Combine that with some interest-free financing on a Best Buy card and you've got yourself a great way to buy some new gear before heading off to school again.

See at Best Buy

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UK Deal: Half price Amazon Dash Buttons with £5 credit on first use android os

Prime members can earn a few quid back when purchasing and using these discounted Dash Buttons.

Amazon Dash Buttons make re-ordering your favorite products quick, easy, and hassle-free. Generally £4.99 each, these devices work wirelessly and will actually place an order on Amazon for you when you press the big silver button on the front. Today, however, Amazon has halved the price of many of its Dash Buttons for popular brands.

Now, that's a nice deal by itself as you're saving £2.50 on the buttons of your choice. There's another added benefit though which makes this deal even sweeter. The first time you press a new Amazon Dash Button, you'll receive a £4.99 discount credit applied to that order. That means you'll effectively be making £2.50 in the process when buying and pressing any of these buttons.

Some of the Dash Buttons you can pick up for half price today include:

Amazon Dash Buttons are exclusively available to Prime members. However, if you're not a Prime member, you can try out these buttons, and the rest of the service's benefits, with a free 30-day trial. Head to Amazon now to see the rest of the discounted Dash Buttons on sale.

For more UK deals coverage, be sure to keep an eye on Thrifter UK, sign up for the UK newsletter and follow the team on Twitter.

See at Amazon UK

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MrMobile's BlackBerry KEY2 LE Hands-On android os

You probably don't need me to tell you that the BlackBerry KEY2 LE is just what it says on the tin: a "lite edition" of the BlackBerry KEY2 we know and (mostly) love. And to be honest, when I first picked up the LE, I was put off by its lighter-weight build, which only served to remind me of the compromises that have been made across the spec sheet to get it down to a manageable price. About the only thing that excited me about the LE was the new Atomic color option.

But then I chatted with some of the people who designed the KEY2 LE, and as you might expect, they had some good arguments for their new product. Of course a daily KEY2 user such as myself isn't going to be moved by a midrange version of the same phone, they said: the LE is for people who wanted the KEY2 experience but didn't want to pay $650 for the privilege. As that group is rather thoroughly represented in the comment section of all my KEY2 videos, that point resonated with me. As for my concerns about the lower-end specs leading to a repeat of the KEYone's sluggish performance? Only time will tell, of course, but the BlackBerry folks didn't seem too worried: along with everything else drag-and-dropped from the KEY2 to the KEY2 LE (yes, it's the exact same display panel), the company's software optimizations have made the jump as well. So it should stay fairly sporty even with the Snapdragon 636 stepping in for the KEY2's 660.

Of course none of those facts can bring back the capacitive function to the keyboard, or give the KEY2 LE quite the spiffiness I still love about my KEY 2 – but I came away from the conversation with more appreciation for the $399 mid-ranger. Click on through to my hands-on video above for more impressions, including a quick keyboard comparison … and subscribe to theMrMobile on YouTube if you want me to give this device the full review treatment when the time comes!

Stay social, my friends

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Coolpad Cool Play 7C With 18:9 Display Gets Listed Online

Key features of the Coolpad Cool Play 7C include an 18:9 TFT panel, up to 4GB of RAM, and three gradient colour variants.

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Sennheiser Launches Its First 'Truly Wireless' Earbuds at IFA 2018

Sennheiser has introduced its first truly wireless earbuds.

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Google Pixel 3 Without Display Notch Leaked via Live Images

Googe Pixel 3 is expected to come with an upgraded 2,915mAh battery as opposed to a 2,700mAh battery found in Pixel 2.

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Jio Phone 2 Next Flash Sale Will Be on September 6

The Jio Phone 2 flash sale is expected to have limited units up for grabs, so buyers will have to be quick in adding a unit to the cart.

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Oppo F9 Pro Now on Sale in India, via Flipkart, Amazon, Paytm Mall

Oppo F9 Pro price in India has been set at Rs. 23,990, and it will be made available in Starry Purple, Sunrise Red, and Twilight Blue colour variants.

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Malka Older, Brandon Sanderson Headline Best Books Out This September

Epic fantasy fans can rejoice thanks to a new book by Steven Erikson.

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Apple Dominated Global Smartwatch Market in Q2 2018: Counterpoint

Apple continued to dominate the smartwatch market with a 41 percent share as global smartwatch shipments grew 37 percent Year-on-Year.

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iPhone XS, Apple Watch Series 4 Renders Leaked Ahead of Launch

Reports have now surfaced that give us an alleged first look at the two iPhone XS OLED models and the upcoming Apple Watch Series 4.

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Prasad Meets Pichai, Seeks Google's Involvement in Empowering Indians

India seeks greater involvement of Google in digital inclusion programmes including "Digital Village" initiative to empower millions of people in the country.

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How AI Could Help Forecast Earthquake Aftershocks

Aftershocks can be more destructive than the quakes they follow, making it all the more important for experts to be able to predict them.

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Motorola One Power With Snapdragon 636 SoC Coming to India in October

Lenovo-owned Motorola has unveiled its latest Motorola One and Motorola One Power smartphones with Android One at IFA 2018 in Berlin.

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Prasad Meets Pichai, Seeks Google's Involvement in Empowering Indians APP_NEWS

India seeks greater involvement of Google in digital inclusion programmes including "Digital Village" initiative to empower millions of people in the country.

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Google Under Fire Again on Search as US Senator Calls for FTC Probe

Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, on Thursday asked Federal Trade Commission Chairman Joseph Simons to reexamine Google's conduct in search and digital advertising.

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Redmi Note 5 Users to Get Face Unlock With Android Oreo Update in India

Xiaomi will roll out the latest Android-8.1 Oreo-based Global Stable ROM for Redmi Note 5 users later this week.

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An inside look at how the OnePlus 6 is made android os

You've seen the teardown, now see the OnePlus 6 being put together.

Over the last four years, OnePlus built up a name for itself as a company that caters to power users. OnePlus now sells in most major global markets, but it's India where the company has seen the most success to date. The Chinese company managed to overtake Samsung as the premium segment in the country earlier this year, a worthy accomplishment from a brand that's just four years old.

A lot of that comes down to the OnePlus 6, the company's latest phone. The OnePlus 6 stands out not because of the hardware — there are plenty of phones that offer similar specs — but mainly due to OnePlus' emphasis on delivering a clean software experience with OxygenOS. Combine that with OnePlus' obsession over speed, and you get a device that's one of the fastest available today. It doesn't hurt that the OnePlus 6 costs roughly half that of the Galaxy Note 9.

So when OnePlus asked me if I'd be interested in touring its factory to see how the OnePlus 6 is manufactured, I immediately jumped at the chance. OnePlus manufactures its phones at a factory an hour's drive away from Shenzhen, where its headquarters are located. The factory I visited is the main production line, and it also has other facilities around the globe that cater to needs in other markets.

With that out of the way, let's take a look at how the OnePlus 6 comes to life.

The assembly process starts off with the mid-frame. The mid-frame comes from a manufacturing facility that's located a few miles away, and the first bay in the assembly line houses a machine that drills a series of holes into the mid-frame. Then the panel is affixed to the front using adhesive, and the phone is then sealed in a case and tightened so the glue affixes evenly.

Once the panel is affixed firmly, it's time to hook up the connectors for the USB-C charging port at the back. Then the haptic motor is connected to the back of the device, to the left of the USB-C port.

Next up is a machine that checks the display for any issues. As the mainboard isn't hooked up to the phone yet, it is connected to an external machine that cycles the panel through a gamut of colors and scenes to make sure the panel doesn't have any defects. After the display tests are finished, the device is placed in a case that covers a sizeable portion of the screen to prevent it from taking any damage while on the assembly floor.

Once that's done, it's time to connect the camera to the mainboard. The camera sensor is removed from its packaging and slotted into the mainboard. The mainboard also contains the Snapdragon 845 chipset, the UFS 2.1 flash memory module, as well as the LPDDR4X RAM along with the Wi-Fi and baseband modems. Essentially, this is the heart of the phone.

Once the camera module is attached, the mainboard is affixed to the phone, and then the front camera assembly is mounted at the top.

After that, a series of FPC connectors for the screen, 3.5mm jack, and the USB-C port are hooked up to the mainboard.

Interestingly, there's a water damage indicator that's located at the bottom. It's essentially a tiny square of paper that is placed on one of the data cables, and it'll turn pink as soon as it comes into contact with any water.

After this, a machine scans the screws and the overall assembly to make sure the tolerances are in order and that there are no defects. Once the parts are assembled, the plastic antenna frame is added to the top section, and a similar housing over the bottom section covering the USB-C port and the 3.5mm jack.

That marks the end of the assembly, and now it's time to slot in the battery. This is fairly straightforward, and the 3300mAh battery has a green pull tab that makes it easy to remove (even though it isn't easily accessible as you'll have to remove the glass back to get to it).

The glass itself is manufactured at a third-party supplier, and the first step is to affix the fingerprint sensor cable to the back. That's the long orange cable you see in the image above. Once the cable for the fingerprint sensor is affixed, it's time to attach the lens cover over the camera housing.

Now comes the interesting part — attaching the glass back to the phone. A machine stamps the glass back into place, and another machine rolls the sides so the adhesive is firmly affixed.

Once the final assembly is done, it's time for testing the phone. A battery of tests are conducted on the assembly floor itself — including battery charging tests, display and color accuracy tests, as well as vibration and camera sensor focusing tests.

Once the tests are done, a layer of film is fixed over the entire surface of the phone, and then it's off to packaging. I always assumed the labels on the back of the box were done by a robot and not by hand, so it was surprising to find that this isn't the case.

Once the packaging is done, the OnePlus 6 is ready to be put into containers and sent off to various destinations around the globe. The assembly line I went to primarily caters to the Chinese market, as you can make out from the product packaging.

It's very interesting to see how phones are put together, even more so when you consider the sheer amount of tech that goes into such a small package. Similarly, the scale at which these devices are manufactured is mind-boggling, particularly in a city like Shenzhen. It's been called the Silicon Valley of hardware, and that label fits once you see just how much of the world's gadgets are made here.

It's no coincidence that OnePlus decided to have its global headquarters in Shenzhen — easy access to manufacturing facilities allows the company to go through several iterations of a design in a matter of weeks. That design prowess is immediately evident once you start using the OnePlus 6: the phone feels just as premium as "true" flagships that cost north of $1,000.

I sat down with OnePlus CEO Pete Lau to talk about how the company approaches product design and the challenges it faces in the handset segment, so stay tuned for that next week.

OnePlus 6

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Xiaomi render suggests the Mi Mix 3 will also feature a mechanical slider android os

Xiaomi's upcoming Mi Mix 3 will also have a mechanical slider, but it could be very different from what we've already seen so far.

When Xiaomi unveiled the Mi Mix 2 last year, it mentioned that it experimented with different designs for hiding the front camera before settling on the current implementation — positioning it in the bottom bar. One of those designs included a notch much like the Essential Phone, and at the time Xiaomi said it would try something different this year.

We now have a better idea of that will look like thanks to a render posted by Xiaomi president Lin Bin on Chinese microblogging platform Weibo. According to the render, the upcoming Mi Mix 3 will sport a camera slider that's similar to what we've seen on the Find X, with the front camera housing tucked behind the slider.

That said, there are a few key differences. Based on the render, it looks like Xiaomi is integrating the camera module into the chassis itself, with the display sliding down to reveal the camera array. It also looks like we'll see a similar IR-based face unlock system like the Mi 8 and the POCO F1.

Bin's post came on the heels of the Honor Magic 2 announcement, with Honor's upcoming phone also offering a mechanical slider that hides the camera sensors. The Mi Mix 2 debuted last September, but the Mix 3 is slated for an unveil in the month of October.

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This Sun Joe pressure washer is down to $140 at a variety of retailers android os

Make that sidewalk look like new!

The Sun Joe SPX4001 2030 PSI electric pressure washer is down to $139.99 on Amazon. This is $30 off what it normally goes for and a match for the lowest price we've ever seen. The last time it dropped this low was back in early July. You can also find this deal at Walmart and Home Depot.

The pressure washer has a 14.5-amp motor that generates up to 2030 PSI cleaning power. The wheels are designed for maximum maneuverability. It doesn't always have to be at maximum power, either. Choose the low 1450 PSI option for easier jobs like dirt or grease. It has five quick-connect spray tips for a multitude of tasks. The hose reel stretches 20 feet. Users give it 4 stars based on 198 reviews.

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Here's what's exclusive in Destiny 2 Forsaken for the PlayStation 4 android os

Strikes, Exotics and Armor sets are exclusive to Sony.

With every new release of Destiny, Sony has gained exclusive access to at least some content and Forsaken is no exception. Released on Thursday, August 30 on PlayStation.blog we have finally gotten a look at what we can expect as PS4 Destiny players. From what we have seen there will be a new Strike named Broodhold, a new Exotic trace rifle called Wavesplitter, an Exotic ship, and a whole armor set for each class. Let's jump right in and find out the details.

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The Strike: Broodhold

Set in the outlaw area of the Reef, called the Tangled shore, this strike is, obviously a very Hive heavy one. Watching the footage you can see Fallen scrambling all over a broken Hive Tombship, probably scavenging it, while they have, according to the Bungie team, found something bad deep in the levels of the ship.

In the gameplay video above we see some really nice details of the inside of the Hive ship and it looks a lot like the Dreadnought from Destiny 1, lots of weird organic things growing on the walls and sickly colors all over. It looks really badass to my eyes and with any Hive strike you can expect waves of Thrall and Ogre's all over the place.

I like this kind of dynamic as it changes the ebb and flow of combat

The big bad of the Strike is a wizard/witch — since destiny one I have called them witches even though some are wizards — and she has a new mechanic that we haven't seen before. She seems to be able to change form from physical to non-corporeal, a shadow form they call it. This means that at certain times of the fight you won't be able to damage her, you will just have to keep cover and, I assume, kill waves of little baddies as she hurls something nasty at you. I like this kind of dynamic as it changes the ebb and flow of combat, making it a little more tactical.

More: Everything we know about Forsaken

New Exotic Weapon: The Wavesplitter

A Void Trace rifle is something fans have been asking after for a long time and the Wavesplitter seems to be the answer to their prayers. This weapon uses the new weapon system from the 2.0 update so it uses green secondary ammo and can be put in the Energy slot instead of being a power weapon. This gives you a lot more options on how to use it as well as more chance to use it, secondary ammo is much more abundant than heavy ammo.

The Wavesplitter also has its own mechanic for maximizing firepower. The power in the weapon actually comes in waves, so it is powerful at first, then ebbs away then comes back. The trick to using it will be to time how long you hold the trigger down to maximize the amount of power while saving ammo. I love this. Adding this kind of mechanic to guns as well as the environment and enemies means you, the player, has more to think about in a normal, humdrum battle and adds another layer of tactical play.

One extra cool thing the Wavesplitter does is gain a power boost on a special orb pick up, meaning the gun uses its full wave of energy for longer. This is shown by the capsules on the top of the gun overcharging and I think we see a lot of people swapping guns just to take advantage of that.

More: What's new in Destiny 2 2.0

Exclusive Armor sets.

Each Class is getting a full armor set as an exclusive with the Forsaken update. Called Red Moon Phantom, Mimetic Savior, and Thorium Holt these armor sets for the Hunter, Titan, and Warlock respectively, are a little subdued. As you can see from the images they don't have a lot of flair or crazy shape to them, though the warlock and hunter helms do look kind of cool with no real eye holes, just a red light. Obviously, some shaders will make a lot of difference to the blandness of the sets but I would have liked to have seen something more western for these exclusives.

the warlock and hunter helms do look kind of cool with no real eye holes, just a red light.

As of right now, there is almost no information on any of the perks that these armor sets might have or what their masterworks might do but who wants to know everything that's going to happen? Well, we do it's why we are here but I don't have that information as of yet. When I do get it I will let you know.

A new ship

The last exclusive we get on the PlayStation 4 is a new ship. Not much to say about this one right now, just that it's called Great Beyond and looks like the picture above. Ships have never really made my pulse race so I'm not all that bothered by this, I'm far more interested in something that changes how I play than cosmetics. Of course, I spend a lot of time looking at the ship floating in space so it needs to look good, and this one does.

Your thoughts?

How do you feel about the exclusive for Forsaken? I think the Armor is a little dull but the strike and gun look excellent. Let me know what you think in the comments below.

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