Huawei will expand its Mobile Services ecosystem in 2020

Huawei's New Year's resolution for 2020 is to build out HMS, the Huawei Mobile Services. They aim to replace the functionality of Google Mobile Services as well as add new features, which will allow Huawei and app developers to be less dependent on Google. HMS is made up of 14 services - 9 core and 5 "growth" services. These involve a Huawei account, which opens the door to the in-app payment system, message push and other functionality. One of those features is Scan Kit, which supports 13 one and two-dimensional barcodes (think QR codes). The mobile payment ecosystem in China is...

Apple and Imagination Technologies ink new multi-year deal

Apple is kicking off the new year by signing a multi-year license agreement with British-based GPU chip supplier Imagination Technologies. Imagination confirmed the news in a brief press release which states the new agreement builds on the previous deal between the two companies dating back to 2014 and grants Apple access to Imagination's IP in exchange for licensing fees. The partnership between the two companies goes back to the very first iPhone which used a PowerVR MBX Lite GPU. In the past few years Apple decided to develop its in-house GPU alongside the A11 Bionic chipset which...

Samsung Galaxy S10 Lite to feature new gen OIS, better than current flagships

The specs sheet of the Samsung Galaxy S10 Lite that leaked last month revealed the smartphone will feature a 48MP main camera on the back joined by a 12MP ultrawide and 5MP macro units. Now the latest piece of information coming our way reveals a bit more about the phone's photography department. Reliable tipster Ice universe says Samsung will use an "unprecedented OIS" tech on the Galaxy S10 Lite, which will be better than the ones we have on current flagships. The tipster doesn't reveal anything else about this OIS tech, but from a previous leak, we know Samsung will use something...

Oppo, vivo and Xiaomi are launching worldwide their seamless file transfer service

Oppo, vivo, and Xiaomi are three of the major smartphone manufacturers in the world, and back in August they announced a cooperation called "Inter-Transfer Alliance Group" which should enable their devices to make seamless peer to peer file transfers at high speeds. After several months of open beta, the group is finally done with the testing and has just announced in a press release the cross-brand service is going global. According to the message to the media, they are timing it with the 5G rollout across the world due to the "expected increase of average file sizes."...

Xiaomi Mi Mix Alpha delayed indefinitely

Back in September Xiaomi made headlines with the announcement of its Mi Mix Alpha, the first phone to feature a wrap-around display. The futuristic concept device was expected to arrive in December in limited quantities and a whopping $2,800/€2,500 asking price but that didn't pan out. In a new development Xiaomi confirmed the Mix Alpha will be delayed and there's no set launch date yet. Last month, the phone made a brief appearance on Xiaomi's online store and Tmall as a place holder without any pre-order or purchase options. During the launch event for the Mix Alpha, Xiaomi's CEO...

Oppo F15 launch date and key specs revealed

Oppo's Indian branch teased the F15 earlier this week. The company didn't reveal the launch date then, but now we know it is January 16. The Chinese phone maker also revealed a few specs of the F15, which include 8GB RAM, 48MP quad camera, under-display fingerprint scanner, and VOOC Flash Charge 3.0 support. Oppo hasn't revealed the rest of the specs of the F15 yet, but the company did share an image of the phone on Twitter, which strongly suggests the F15 will be a rebranded A91. The Oppo A91 was launched last month in China. It's powered by the Helio P70 SoC and sports a 6.4"...

Samsung Galaxy Note9 Android 10 update now widely available

Samsung released the stable build of Android 10 update for the Galaxy Note9 on New Year's Eve, but it was only seeding to those enrolled in the beta program. Now the update has expanded to all users, who are running Android Pie on their Note9. The update comes bearing version number N960FXXU4DSLB and is currently seeding in Germany. The rollout should expand to other regions over the following days. Those living in Germany can try downloading the update by heading to the Settings > Software update menu. And, if you are a non-beta Note9 user residing in another country and have...

Xiaomi preparing mightier versions of Redmi K30 5G, Redmi Note 8

The Xiaomi sub-brand Redmi might be on the way to introduce new versions of two of its best-selling phones. A variant of the Redmi K30 5G was certified with 10 GB RAM, while the regular Redmi Note 8 is now licensed with 8 GB RAM and 256 GB storage. Both entries were approved on Chinese regulatory TENAA, where the two models got their specs updated. Aside from the more memory, nothing else is new - Redmi K30 5G has a Snapdragon 765G chipset, four cameras and two punch holes for the dual selfie cameras. The Redmi Note 8 also has four snappers on the back, but it falls in the...

Realme X2 Pro 6GB/64GB variant now on sale in India

The Realme X2 Pro launched in India last November was initially available in two memory configurations - 8GB/128GB and 12GB/256GB priced at INR29,999 ($420/€375) and INR33,999 ($475/€425), respectively. Now a cheaper version with 6GB RAM and 64GB storage is available in India for INR27,999 ($390/€350). The 6GB RAM variant comes in Neptune Blue and Lunar White colors, and is already available for purchase through Flipkart. It should go on sale through the company's official Indian site soon too. Realme X2 Pro in Neptune Blue and Lunar White colors The Realme X2 Pro is powered by...

Realme X50 5G Lite gets teased days before the announcement

Realme X50 5G is arriving on January 7, but today we got an official confirmation from a senior executive at the company that the flagship will have a Lite version as well. The device is machine translated as Realme X50 5G Youth Edition, but these devices are marketed outside the Chinese market with the Lite moniker. Realme's post with an image of the letter "Y" The official Weibo account of the company simply went on social media and posted a quick message, saying "Dare to Leap! Youth! Real!", obviously revealing the Lite phone is not a gimmick. There was a double...

Xiaomi Mi Watch Color price revealed

Xiaomi announced the Mi Watch Color smartwatch earlier this week. It didn't reveal the price back then, but today the company took to Chinese social network Weibo to announce that Mi Watch Color will be sold for CNY799 ($115/€100) in China starting 10 AM local time tomorrow. The Mi Watch Color sports a 1.39" 454x454 pixel AMOLED display and supports more than 110 watch faces. It is water-resistant up to 50 meters and comes with fitness tracking, heart rate monitoring, and sleep tracking. The Mi Watch Color has GPS and multi-function NFC in tow, and it packs a 420 mAh battery that...

Over half a dozen Samsung Galaxy A series smartphones trademarked

Samsung launched a bevy of Galaxy A series smartphones in 2019 and it seems the company has no plans to slow down in 2020 since over half a dozen Galaxy A series smartphone names have been trademarked in Samsung's home country South Korea. According to a set of images posted on Twitter, the Korean conglomerate got a total of nine new smartphones trademarked - Galaxy A12, Galaxy A22, Galaxy A32, Galaxy A42, Galaxy A52, Galaxy A62, Galaxy A72, Galaxy A82, and Galaxy A92. Nine new Galaxy A series smartphones trademarked Details are scarce about these smartphones right now, but...

Realme X50 5G Lite gets teased a day before the announcement

Realme X50 5G is arriving on January 7, but today we got an official confirmation from a senior executive at the company that the flagship will have a Lite version as well. The device is machine translated as Realme X50 5G Youth Edition, but these devices are marketed outside the Chinese market with the Lite moniker. Realme's post with an image of the letter "Y" The official Weibo account of the company simply went on social media and posted a quick message, saying "Dare to Leap! Youth! Real!", obviously revealing the Lite phone is not a gimmick. There was a double...

Xiaomi CEO teases Redmi K30 5G packaging

One of Xiaomi's most anticipated devices was just teased on Weibo by Xiaomi's founder and CEO, Lei Jun. The executive shared (via Weibo) a photo of the Redmi K30 5G's retail box. The minimal design on the box features a white box with colorful letters. The Redmi K30's 5G variant will be going on sale in China starting January 7, but the company has already begun taking in-store orders at select Mi Store locations throughout China. The LTE version of the Redmi K30 has already been on sale since the first half of December and the main difference with the 5G version is that the 5G...

2019 Winners and Losers: vivo

This year the mobile phone market saw the rise of many new trends - from high refresh rate screens through 108MP image sensors to periscope cameras. The first foldable phones went on sale, charging speeds went through the roof, displays got curvier and grew punch holes. Some brands used these trends to their advantage and grow in the market, others missed the mark. In this series we look at what each company got right in 2019 and where their efforts came short. One of the big players on the smartphone market was vivo, launching nearly 50 smartphones and variants in the span of 12...

2019 Winners and Losers: Realme

This year the mobile phone market saw the rise of many new trends - from high refresh rate screens through 108MP image sensors to periscope cameras. The first foldable phones went on sale, charging speeds went through the roof, displays got curvier and grew punch holes. Some brands used these trends to their advantage and grow in the market, others missed the mark. In this series we look at what each company got right in 2019 and where their efforts came short. Realme had an amazing year, delivering a huge number of new smartphones and striking gold with many of them, which made it the...

Huami's Amazfit T-Rex smartwatch to be announced on January 8 at CES, live photos leak

Xiaomi-backed company Huami is going to hold some announcements next week at CES in Las Vegas. The company has already revealed that it is going to announce the Amazfit BipS and its TWS truly wireless earbuds. According to a new teaser that Huami posted on Chinese social media site Weibo, there's a new rugged smartwatch coming called the Amazfit T-Rex. Source: Huami on Weibo The teaser translates to "New series of outdoor smartwatches meets you on January 8." The silhouette of the teaser shows a rugged-looking smartwatch with a thick wrist strap, which really defines the type of...

Watch our most popular videos of 2019

The past 12 months saw us put in a lot of work in our YouTube channel and judging by the way it's growing you guys really liked what we are making of that place. So we decided to look back and share the most popular videos of 2019. Releasing a phone in the early days of 2019 is one of the key elements to getting many views throughout the year, but the more important part is actually launching a phone many will want to buy. Xiaomi did exactly that - it was the first company to introduce a midranger with a 48 MP camera and it struck gold. Huawei wanted to be ahead of everyone on the...

Telegram pushes massive new update with dozens of changes

Telegram has released a massive new update for iOS and Android that brings with it dozens of new features and changes. One of the major new additions is the Theme Editor 2.0. Telegram already has robust theme support, with ability to change color schemes and backgrounds. With Theme Editor 2.0, you can now choose a precise custom color from a color picker tool. You can pick custom colors for the entire app, background and messages view. Once you are done making your theme, you can also share it with other Telegram users. The new version also adds more patterns for the background,...

ZTE Axon 10s Pro 5G full specs revealed by TENAA

ZTE unveiled the Axon 10s Pro 5G with the flagship Snapdragon 865 SoC last month. And while the company hasn't announced its launch date yet, the smartphone has passed through TENAA, revealing its full specs in the process. The Axon 10s Pro 5G will boast a 6.47" OLED display, having a FullHD+ resolution and a fingerprint reader underneath. The smartphone will boot to Android 10 and arrive in three memory configurations - 6GB/128GB, 8GB/256GB, and 12GB/512GB. ZTE Axon 10s Pro 5G on TENAA For photography, the Axon 10s Pro 5G will feature a 20MP selfie camera on the front and...

The best phones of the decade - part 2

At the turn of the decade we look back at the most influential phones to come out in the past 10 years. You can find the first part here. Google Pixel - 2016, October After parting ways with Motorola, Google tapped long-term partner HTC to develop the Pixel and Pixel XL (HTC also built the first ever Android phone). But this isn't about the search giant finally slapping its name on a phone, which it avoided previously so as not to antagonize other Android makers. It's not about the death of the Nexus line either. No, this is about computational photography. Google developed a...

Samsung Galaxy Note10 Lite live images surface

Around two weeks ago, we saw renders of the Samsung Galaxy Note10 Lite which revealed its design. Now we are looking at its live images that corroborate previous design leaks. As you can see from the pictures below, the Galaxy Note10 Lite will sport a centered punch-hole display and feature triple cameras at the back housed inside a rectangular plate in the upper-left corner. The glossy back doesn't have a fingerprint reader, though, meaning we are likely looking at an in-display solution. Samsung Galaxy Note10 Lite leaked live images The Galaxy Note10 Lite will have the...

Oppo is recruiting beta testers for ColorOS 7 based on Android 10 for the F11 and F11 Pro

Oppo announced ColorOS 7 based on Android 10 back in November, with an initial launch in China followed by it going global. The company has in the meantime been working on updating its phones to this new version of its skin, but it's been slower than a lot of its competitors with the rollouts. If you have an Oppo F11, F11 Pro, or F11 Pro Avengers Edition, here's some good news for you. Oppo is opening up a "trial version" (read: open beta) of ColorOS 7 for these devices. If you want to get this on yours, then head over to the Source linked below for the full instructions. Note that...

Realme 5i passes through Geekbench confirming key specs

The Realme 5i coming on January 6 has passed through Geekbench, confirming its key specs in the process. According to the benchmark database, the Realme 5i, bearing version number RMX2030, will be powered by the Snapdragon 665 SoC paired with 4GB RAM. The smartphone will run Android Pie out of the box, which will be likely layered with ColorOS 6. The Realme 5i scored 1,543 and 5,602 points in Geekbench 4's single and multi-core tests, respectively. And on Geekbench 5, it achieved single and multi-core scores of 314 and 1,389 points, respectively. Realme 5i on Geekbench 4 (left)...

Top 10 most popular reviews of 2019: Q4

We are taking a look back at the phones that excited you the most in 2019 and the reviews that got you reading. We are now at the final quarter - you can also check out the 10 most popular reviews of Q1, Q2 and Q3. Welcome to the final installment in our top reviews of the year recap. The months October, November and December had just 3 flagships and were dominated by upper-midrangers. The most popular review of Q4 was the Xiaomi Redmi Note 8 Pro, which was characterized by snappy performance from the Helio G90T chip, a versatile 64MP camera and outstanding battery life. We didn't much...