Redmi Note 11 series launches internationally with four phones, starting as low as $159

Xiaomi’s sub-brand Redmi launched the latest iteration of its popular Redmi Note lineup in China last year. The new Redmi Note 11 series included three devices — the vanilla Redmi Note 11, the Redmi Note 11 Pro, and the Redmi Note 11 Pro Plus. A month after the launch, Xiaomi debuted the Redmi Note 11 series in the Indian market. However, the company only launched the base variant in the region and, that too, under a different name. In keeping with this annoying rebranding trend, Xiaomi then launched the Chinese Redmi Note 11 Pro and Redmi Note 11 Pro Plus in India as the Xiaomi 11i and Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge. And now, the company has launched four slightly different devices in other international markets under the Redmi Note 11 banner.

The Redmi Note 11 series launched globally today includes four devices — the vanilla Redmi Note 11, the Redmi Note 11S, the Redmi Note 11 Pro, and the Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G. While the global variants feature the same design as the Chinese Redmi Note 11 models, they feature different hardware. Check out the tablet below for a quick rundown of the specifications.

Redmi Note 11 series (Global): Specifications

Specification	Redmi Note 11	Redmi Note 11S	Redmi Note 11 Pro	Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G
Build	IP53 splash-proof Corning Gorilla Glass 3 front	IP53 splash-proof Corning Gorilla Glass 3 front	IP53 splash-proof Corning Gorilla Glass 5 front	IP53 splash-proof Corning Gorilla Glass 5 front
Dimensions & Weight	159.867 x 73.87 x 8.09mm 179g	159.867 x 73.87 x 8.09mm 179g	164.19 x 76.1 x 8.12mm 202g	164.19 x 76.1 x 8.12mm 202g
Display	6.43-inch FHD+ 2400 x 1080 90Hz refresh rate 180Hz touch sampling rate DCI-P3 wide color gamut 1000nits peak brightness	6.43-inch FHD+ 2400 x 1080 90Hz refresh rate 180Hz touch sampling rate DCI-P3 wide color gamut 1000nits peak brightness	6.67-inch FHD+ AMOLED 2400 x 1080 120Hz refresh rate 360Hz touch sampling rate DCI-P3 wide color gamut 1200nits peak brightness	6.67-inch FHD+ AMOLED 2400 x 1080 120Hz refresh rate 360Hz touch sampling rate DCI-P3 wide color gamut 1200nits peak brightness
SoC	Qualcomm Snapdragon 680 Adreno 610 GPU	MediaTek Helio G96 ARM Mali-G57 MC2 GPU	MediaTek Helio G96 ARM Mali-G57 MC2 GPU	Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 Adreno 619 GPU
RAM & Storage	4GB LPDDR4x + 64GB UFS 2.2 4GB + 128GB 6GB + 128GB	6GB LPDDR4x + 64GB UFS 2.2 6GB + 128GB 8GB + 128GB	6GB LPDDR4x + 64GB UFS 2.2 6GB + 128GB 8GB + 128GB	6GB LPDDR4x + 64GB UFS 2.2 6GB + 128GB 8GB + 128GB
Battery & Charging	5,000mAh 33W fast charging support 33W charger included	5,000mAh 33W fast charging support 33W charger included	5,000mAh 67W fast charging support 67W charger included	5,000mAh 67W fast charging support 67W charger included
Security	Side-mounted fingerprint scanner	Side-mounted fingerprint scanner	Side-mounted fingerprint scanner	Side-mounted fingerprint scanner
Rear Camera(s)	Primary: 50MP f/1.8 Ultra-wide: 8MP f/2.2, 118° FoV Macro: 2MP f/2.4 Depth: 2MP f/2.4	Primary: 108MP Samsung HM2 f/1.9 Ultra-wide: 8MP f/2.2, 118° FoV Macro: 2MP f/2.4 Depth: 2MP f/2.4	Primary: 108MP Samsung HM2 f/1.9 Ultra-wide: 8MP f/2.2, 118° FoV Macro: 2MP f/2.4 Depth: 2MP f/2.4	Primary: 108MP Samsung HM2 f/1.9 Ultra-wide: 8MP f/2.2, 118° FoV Macro: 2MP f/2.4 Depth: 2MP f/2.4
Front Camera(s)	13MP f/2.4	16MP f/2.4	16MP f/2.4	16MP f/2.4
Port(s)	USB Type-C 3.5mm headphone jack	USB Type-C 3.5mm headphone jack	USB Type-C 3.5mm headphone jack	USB Type-C 3.5mm headphone jack
Audio	Dual speakers	Dual speakers	Dual speakers	Dual speakers
Connectivity	Dual SIM + dedicated microSD card slot 4G LTE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi Bluetooth 5.0	Dual SIM + dedicated microSD card slot 4G LTE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi Bluetooth 5.0	Dual SIM + hybrid microSD card slot 4G LTE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi Bluetooth 5.1	Dual SIM + hybrid microSD card slot 4G LTE 5G 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi Bluetooth 5.1
Software	MIUI 13 based on Android 11	MIUI 13 based on Android 11	MIUI 13 based on Android 11	MIUI 13 based on Android 11
Other Features	NFC (limited regional availability) Z-axis linear motor IR blaster	NFC (limited regional availability) Z-axis linear motor IR blaster	NFC Z-axis linear motor IR blaster	NFC Z-axis linear motor IR blaster

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Redmi Note 11 & Redmi Note 11S

The global variant of the Redmi Note 11 and the new Redmi Note 11S are essentially the same device with a few minor differences. The regular model features Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 680 chip, a 50MP primary camera, and a 13MP selfie shooter, while the Redmi Note 11S packs MediaTek’s Helio G96 SoC, a 108MP primary camera, and a 16MP selfie shooter. Other than that, the devices are identical. They both feature a 6.43-inch FHD+ display with a peak refresh rate of 90Hz, a touch sampling rate of 180Hz, and 1000nits of peak brightness.

Redmi Note 11

The Redmi Note 11 and Note 11S come with a 5,000mAh battery that offers support for 33W wired fast charging with the included charging brick. Both phones feature a dual SIM slot and a dedicated microSD card slot for expansion, a USB Type-C port, a 3.5mm headphone jack, 4G LTE capabilities, 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth 5.0. Both models feature a side-mounted fingerprint scanner, a Z-axis linear vibration motor, an IR blaster, and NFC.

The two devices come in three RAM/storage options, with the vanilla model featuring up to 6GB of LPDDR4x RAM and 128GB UFS 2.2 storage and the Note 11S packing up to 8GB of LPDDR4x RAM and 128GB of UFS 2.2 storage. The devices also sport dual speakers, 2MP macro cameras, and 2MP depth sensors. On the software front, both models run MIUI 13 based on Android 11.

Redmi Note 11S

As mentioned earlier, the global Redmi Note 11 isn’t the same device that Xiaomi launched in China last year. The Chinese variant packs a larger 6.6-inch FHD+ 90Hz LCD panel, a MediaTek Dimensity 810 SoC, a 50MP primary camera, an 8MP ultra-wide camera, a 16MP selfie shooter, and a 5,000mAh battery with 33W fast charging support. For more information about the Chinese variant, check out our previous coverage.

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Redmi Note 11 Pro & Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G

Although Xiaomi only launched one variant of the Redmi Note 11 Pro in China, the company has launched two slightly different models in global markets. The global Redmi Note 11 Pro and Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G feature the same 6.67-inch FHD+ AMOLED displays as the Chinese Redmi Note 11 Pro. The display offers a peak refresh rate of 120Hz, a 360Hz touch sampling rate, and 1200nits of peak brightness.

Redmi Note 11 Pro

While the two models feature the same display, design, and form factor, they pack different SoCs. The global Redmi Note 11 Pro includes the MediaTek Helio G96 chip, while the 5G variant comes with the Snapdragon 695. The SoCs on both devices are paired with up to 8GB of LPDDR4x RAM and up to 128GB of UFS 2.2 storage. Both phones pack 5,000mAh batteries with 67W fast charging support, side-mounted fingerprint scanners, and dual speakers.

In the camera department, the Redmi Note 11 Pro and Pro 5G sport 108MP primary cameras, 8MP ultra-wide cameras, 2MP macro cameras, and 2MP depth sensors. Over on the front, both models sport a 16MP selfie shooter. Both phones also feature dual hybrid SIM trays, Bluetooth 5.1, 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi, NFC, Z-axis linear vibration motors, and IR blasters. As with the non-Pro variants, the Redmi Note 11 Pro and Note 11 Pro 5G run MIUI 13 based on Android 11.

Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G

In comparison, the Chinese variant of the Redmi Note 11 Pro packs a MediaTek Dimensity 920 chip, a 5,160mAh battery, Bluetooth 5.2, Wi-Fi 6, and no depth sensor. For more information about the Chinese variant, check out our previous coverage.

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Pricing & Availability

The Redmi Note 11 lineup launched internationally will go on sale starting February 16th at 12am PST (US west coast time). For the first 48 hours, users can get early bird discounts on some models if they purchase on AliExpress. Check out the table below for the complete pricing details:

S.No.	Device	Pricing
1.	Redmi Note 11 Twilight Blue Graphite Gray Star Blue	4GB + 64GB: $179 ($159) 4GB + 128GB: $199 ($179) 6GB + 128GB: $229 ($199)
2.	Redmi Note 11S Graphite Gray Twilight Blue Pearl White	6GB + 64GB: $249 (early bird $229) 6GB + 128GB: $279 8GB + 128GB: $299
3.	Redmi Note 11 Pro Graphite Gray Polar White Star Blue	6GB + 64GB: $299 6GB + 128GB: $329 8GB + 128GB: $349
4.	Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G Graphite Gray Polar White Atlantic Blue	6GB + 64GB: $329 (early bird $299) 6GB + 128GB: $349 (early bird $329) 8GB + 128GB: $ 379 (early bird $349)

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Apple announces its iPhone macro photography challenge

Every year, Apple invites iPhone users worldwide to join its #ShotoniPhone challenge. As the name of the challenge suggests, it’s a photography one that gives participants the chance to get featured on Apple’s website, billboards, and other public platforms. This year’s challenge revolves around macro photos shot on iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max. Users interested in participating have until February 16 of this year to post their submissions.

To join the challenge, post your macro shots on Twitter or Instagram using the hashtags #ShotoniPhone and #iPhonemacrochallenge. Alternatively, you can send an email to shotoniphone@apple.com using the following naming format for your photo: ‘firstname_lastname_macro_iPhonemodel.’ Additionally, you will have to use ‘Shot on iPhone Macro Challenge Submission’ as a subject line for your email. Emailing your submissions ensures the photos are uploaded in the highest quality possible — as opposed to posting them on social media. The company has shared some tips for the interested:

• Make sure to get close to your subject — you can get as close as 2 centimeters (about an inch) away.
• Place the primary point of focus near the center of the frame, as that’s where the sharpest focus is when shooting in macro on iPhone.
• Tap an area in the viewfinder to set a specific focus point.
• Shoot at .5x to capture an Ultra Wide field of view, or try shooting at 1x for tighter framing — iPhone will automatically switch cameras as you get close while maintaining the 1x framing.

Apple will announce ten winners in April — once the judges evaluate the submitted photos. Selected shots will get featured in Apple Store locations, digital campaigns, and other places. You can read the entire newsroom post on the company’s website if you’re curious to know additional details.

Will you be participating in Apple’s #ShotoniPhone macro photography challenge this year? Let us know in the comments section below.

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Huawei P50 Pro and P50 Pocket launched internationally

Huawei launched the Huawei P50 series, the company’s newest flagship lineup, in China last July. It succeeds the Huawei P40 series from 2020 and offers several exciting upgrades, including an intriguing design, improved performance, and upgraded camera hardware. Huawei’s P series is known for bringing cutting-edge camera innovations, and we expected that at some point, we’d see an international launch. That launch is now finally here, though instead of the regular P50, Huawei is launching both the P50 Pocket and the P50 Pocket Premium Edition made with Iris van Herpen.

Huawei P50 Pro

The Huawei P50 Pro features a 6.6-inch curved OLED display with a 120Hz display refresh rate and 300Hz touch sampling rate. It packs a Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 4G chipset, and it’s paired with 8GB and 256GB of flash storage. It has a quad-camera setup on the back with Leica branding, and Huawei says the cameras are equipped with the company’s new Dual Matrix camera system. It’s dual-matrix system which combines a 10-channel multi-spectrum sensor, Huawei XD Optics, and XD Fusion Pro image engine for improved image clarity and high dynamic range.

The primary shooter is a 50MP sensor with OIS, and it’s accompanied by a 64MP periscope camera which offers 3.5x optical zoom and up to 100x digital zoom, a 13MP ultra-wide cam, and a 40MP monochrome sensor. There’s a 13MP selfie camera cut into the top middle of the 1228 x 2700 resolution display.

Huawei P50 Pro Hands-on: Excellent cameras as expected, but HarmonyOS doesn’t change much

The Huawei P50 Pro gets a 4,360 mAh battery that charges at 66W with the included charger in the box, and it can charge at 50W wirelessly with a compatible charging pad. It also packs in-display fingerprint scanner, Bluetooth 5.2, IP68 dust and water protection, a USB Type-C port, and stereo speakers. Finally, there are no Google Play Services, and the phone runs EMUI 12 out of the box.

Internationally, the Huawei P50 Pro is launching in Golden Black and Cocoa Gold.

Huawei P50 Pocket

Huwaei P50 Pocket Premium Edition

Huawei unveiled the Huawei P50 Pocket in China back in December, a stylish clamshell foldable phone that takes on the Galaxy Z Flip 3. It’s the company’s first foldable smartphone to adopt the clamshell form factor, and inherits the dual-ring design of the Huawei P50 Pro. The first ring houses a cover display and the second one packs camera sensors. The main display is a 6.9-inch 2700 x 1228 OLED panel that offers up to 120Hz refresh rate and 300Hz touch sampling rate.

Similar to the Huawei P50 Pro, the phone comes equipped with Huawei’s new Dual Matrix camera system, which combines a 10-channel multi-spectrum sensor, Huawei XD Optics, and XD Fusion Pro image engine for improved image clarity and high dynamic range. The triple rear camera setup consists of a 40MP primary shooter, a 13MP ultrawide camera, and a 32MP “super spectrum sensor” (likely to be a monochrome sensor).

The Huawei P50 Pocket is powered by the same Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 4G chipset as in the Huawei P50 Pro, and it’s paired with 8GB/12GB RAM and 256GB/512GB storage. It houses a 4,000mAh battery with 40W fast charging support.

The phone has a side-mounted fingerprint scanner and supports Face Unlock via the main camera and the selfie camera. On the software front, the Huawei P50 Pocket runs EMUI 12 without Google Play Services.

Pricing and availability

Huawei hasn’t said where exactly it intends on launching these devices, however, has said that it will be launched in “key markets” across “Asia Pacific, The Middle East & Africa, Europe, and Latin America.” European pricing information is available below.

• P50 Pro: €1199
• P50 Pocket: €1299
• P50 Pocket Premium Edition: €1599

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How to pass SafetyNet on Android after rooting or installing a custom ROM

SafetyNet bypassing has long been a cat and mouse game between Google and the community. The community loves to modify the software on their phone, a process that usually involves bootloader unlocking as the first step. But this, in turn, trips SafetyNet, which can cause several popular apps to stop working on the phone, some of them understandably so as they rely on a tamper-proof environment for execution.

SafetyNet is meant for app developers, but they can choose to use it or not. For a regular end user, though, you can either give up on the modding potential of Android and pass the SafetyNet compatibility tests, or stay ostracized by the app publishers. If you’re wondering how to pass SafetyNet even after rooting or installing a custom ROM on your device, this guide should help you with that.

Table of Contents:

• What is SafetyNet?
• SafetyNet tripping and its consequences
• How to pass SafetyNet attestation on Android devices
  1. Restoring the original firmware and relocking the bootloader
  2. Using Magisk
  3. Using Universal SafetyNet Fix
  4. Using ih8sn
• Verification

What is SafetyNet?

Android is designed to run without giving the end user any kind of privileged control over the underlying subsystems. In case a person operating an Android device is able to gain similar access to administrative (AKA “superuser”) permissions as on Linux, they can essentially alter or replace Android system applications and settings. From the perspective of an app developer, it means the device their app is running on can potentially be compromised. There should be some kind of abuse detection system to examine the device’s software and hardware environment and assure the app developers that everything is alright. This is where SafetyNet comes in.

While modding is an integral part of the Android ecosystem, sometimes you need a high degree of rigor in the OS to satisfy the constraints of security policies. SafetyNet is such a set of abuse-detection APIs present in the Google Play Services. By calling the SafetyNet Attestation API, third-party applications can check if the software environment of the device has been tampered with in any way. The API checks for various things like the bootloader unlock status, signs of superuser binaries, and more to compare the current state of the target Android device and verify the integrity of the environment against a known ‘safe’ value on the server-side.

SafetyNet Attestation API protocol

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SafetyNet tripping and its consequences

A number of departure events from the stock configuration of an Android device eventually lead to SafetyNet tripping. Even if you just unlock the bootloader of your phone and leave the factory-installed OS untouched, you may still get a “CTS profile mismatch” (where CTS stands for the Compatibility Test Suite) error that causes the SafetyNet check to fail. If you root your Android device or replace the stock firmware with a custom ROM, you will pretty much end up with a SafetyNet failed status. As a result, you can’t use apps and games that employ SafetyNet validation on the device. This is especially true for banking and other financial apps such as Google Pay, as they strictly rely on the SafetyNet Attestation result and won’t allow users to operate the app on a seemingly tampered environment for the sake of security.

When it comes to games, developers use SafetyNet for assessing the device’s integrity so that they can prevent rogue players from cheating or modifying in-game variables for unfair advantages. Last but not least, you can also come across examples where publishers are simply misusing Google’s tamper detection mechanism for no practical reason, which is why power users want to evade the detection routines.

In a nutshell, the modding community will have to choose between having access to root/custom ROMs/kernels/etc. or their preferred apps and games. This might sound like the end of aftermarket development on Android, but there is hope.

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How to pass SafetyNet attestation on Android devices

Since Google periodically updates the backbone of the SafetyNet Attestation API, there is no true universal method to bypass the checks. Since the restrictions depend on a number of factors, you may pass SafetyNet on a modded environment by spoofing the most significant parameters on legacy devices, but the same trick might not work at all on newer phones. The aftermarket development community has come up with a number of techniques for passing the SafetyNet checks, but keep in mind that a generic implementation isn’t possible due to the ever-changing nature of the anti-abuse API. This is a game of cat-and-mouse — one day you will be ahead, the other day you will not be.

With the gradual move towards the hardware attestation strategy, Google is relying on the security of the phone’s Trusted Execution Environment (TEE) or dedicated hardware security module (HSM) for tamper detection. Finding a critical security vulnerability in the isolated secure environment of a device and exploiting it to spoof SafetyNet’s client-side response can’t be a feasible approach, but there exist other ways to get past the obstacle.

Here are some of the well-known methods to pass SafetyNet:

1. Restoring the original firmware and relocking the bootloader

This is perhaps the simplest way to pass SafetyNet, but it has its own merits and demerits. All you need to do is find the correct firmware for your Android device, flash it, and finally re-lock the bootloader. Of course, you’ll lose most of the bells and whistles of Android modding, but it actually makes sense when you need to use your device in a managed environment with strict security policies or you’re trying to sell your device.

2. Using Magisk

If you own a legacy Android smartphone, Magisk is your best bet to pass SafetyNet without much hassle. Even though the current Canary channel of Magisk doesn’t feature MagiskHide anymore, you can still stick to last stable release (v23.0) and utilize MagiskHide to hide root status from apps. Furthermore, you can install Magisk modules like MagiskHide Props Config to change the device fingerprint in order to pass SafetyNet.

Talking about the Canary channel, the new “DenyList” feature of  Magisk is an interesting development, which allows users to assign a list of processes where Magisk denies further modifications and reverts all changes it had done. With an appropriate configuration, it can also be used to pass SafetyNet in some scenarios.

Magisk XDA Forums

Lastly, there’s Shamiko — a work-in-progress module written on top of Zygisk (Magisk in the zygote process). It reads the list of apps to hide from Magisk’s denylist to hide Magisk root, Zygisk itself, and Zygisk modules to circumvent SafetyNet. However, Shamiko can only work after disabling the DenyList feature.

If you’ve installed Magisk for root and want a reliable way to circumvent SafetyNet after MagiskHide was removed, then wait for the “Shamiko” module to be released. It uses the new Zygisk capability (Magisk in Zygote) hence it’s more powerful than MagiskHide. Still a WIP tho.

— Mishaal Rahman (@MishaalRahman) January 4, 2022

3. Using Universal SafetyNet Fix

Bypassing Google’s hardware-backed SafetyNet attestation technique is a tad bit difficult, but it’s not entirely impossible. The Universal SafetyNet Fix project by XDA Senior Member kdrag0n cleverly accomplishes this feat by forcing the basic attestation over the hardware-backed checks.

Notably, Universal SafetyNet Fix has a dependency on Magisk when it comes to passing the basic attestation part. The developer offers two different builds of the fix: The Zygisk variant for Magisk Canary and the Riru variant for stable Magisk.

Universal SafetyNet Fix: GitHub Repo |||  XDA Discussion Thread

4. ih8sn

In case you don’t want to rely on Magisk to pass SafetyNet attestation, you can try out an experimental add-on named ih8sn. After applying, it can spoof a plethora of prop values in order to circumvent SafetyNet checks like the MagiskHide Props Config module, but there’s no dependency on Magisk in the first place.

The ih8sn tool is maintained by several LineageOS developers, but the LineageOS project doesn’t officially endorse it yet. To know more, take a look at its codebase by following the link below.

ih8sn GitHub Repo

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Verification

After applying one of the aforementioned SafetyNet passing methods, you may wish to verify the result. The Magisk app comes with an option to initiate the SafetyNet checking routine right from its main menu, which is really handy. You can also opt for an open source app named YASNAC (short for Yet Another SafetyNet Attestation Checker) to check the status and (optionally) examine the JSON response.

YASNAC - Yet Another SafetyNet Attestation Checker (Free, Google Play) →

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That’s how you can pass SafetyNet on your phone. With a little bit of time and patience, it is possible to restore the true modding potential of Android without bothering about the SafetyNet Attestation failures. We’ll be updating this guide with more SafetyNet passing methods, so check back again in the future!

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Google has a new plan for replacing browser cookies with ‘Topics API’

Browser cookies, especially cross-domain cookies, make it easy to track people across the internet and collect data for targeted advertisements. That’s why many browsers now block third-party cookies, from Firefox to Vivaldi, and Google has been trying to build a replacement that addresses some privacy concerns. The company’s first attempt didn’t work out well, so Google is trying again with Topics API.

Mozilla, Vivaldi, Brave, and other browsers had no plans to implement FloC.

Google’s first attempt at replacing cookies was announced in August 2019 as the “Privacy Sandbox.” The first implementation was the Federated Learning of Cohorts, or FLoC for short, which shifted the responsibility of tracking away from cookies and third-party ad networks to the browser. The technology grouped together people with similar browsing histories, then allowed advertisers to target those groups of people (the “cohorts”) without most of the personally-identifiable information that cookies usually provide. Google started testing FloC in Chrome last year.

FloC was slightly better than third-party cookies, but it was not popular with many privacy advocacy groups and companies. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) criticized Google for rolling out FloC to millions of Chrome users before possible privacy risks were full addressed, and DuckDuckGo advised people to turn off FloC (and updated its browser extension to block all FloC tracking). Mozilla, Vivaldi, Brave, and other browsers had no plans to implement FloC, while Apple and Microsoft took a “wait and see” approach.

Third-party cookies vs Topics API (Source: Google)

Google announced on Tuesday that it is replacing the FLoC proposal with a new technology, called the Topics API. Similar to the earlier FLoC design, it uses your browser to locally generate groups that advertisers can target, but now it’s based on specific topics instead of grouping people that share an interest in multiple topics together. Here’s how Google explains it:

With Topics, your browser determines a handful of topics, like “Fitness” or “Travel,” that represent your top interests for that week based on your browsing history. Topics are kept for only three weeks and old topics are deleted. This process happens entirely on your device without involving any external servers, including Google servers. When you visit a participating site, Topics picks just three topics, one topic from each of the past three weeks, to share with the site and its advertising partners. Topics enables browsers to give you meaningful transparency and control over this data, and in Chrome, we’re building user controls that let you see the topics, remove any you don’t like, or disable the feature completely.

Even though the new technology might be an improvement over FloC, it likely won’t be much more popular. The Topics API relies on your web browser to generate the topics you are interested in, based on your browsing history, essentially turning Chrome itself into an advertisement targeting platform. That’s slightly better than third-party cookies sending buckets of user data to advertisers, but still isn’t privacy-respecting.

Google declined to confirm if the final implementation of the Topics API would be opt-in or opt-out for Chrome users, and the company also didn’t say if it has already discussed the standard with other browser vendors. Google Chrome has somewhere around 50-60% market share in the browser market (and around 70% on mobile), so Google could push ahead without Microsoft or Apple on board, but that could give more ammunition to anti-competitive lawsuits and fines.

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JioPhone 5G leak suggests that India may finally get 5G this year

After launching the JioPhone Next last year, Indian telecom giant Jio is now gearing up to launch an affordable 5G phone. The upcoming device, which will reportedly be called JioPhone 5G, is currently in the works and will hit the market sometime later this year. Given that Jio’s affordable phones sell like hotcakes, the rumored JioPhone 5G could singlehandedly drive 5G adoption in India.

Although Jio hasn’t revealed any official info about the JioPhone 5G yet, Android Central has managed to procure some details about its hardware specifications and software. According to the publication, the JioPhone 5G will pack Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 480 chipset, which should offer a significant performance improvement over the Snapdragon 215 found in the JioPhone Next. The device will also feature a larger 6.5-inch display, however, it will still be an HD+ (1600 x 720) panel.

Jio will reportedly pair the Snapdragon 480 in the JioPhone 5G with 4G RAM, 32GB of onboard storage, and a microSD card slot for further expansion. As far as 5G connectivity is concerned, the JioPhone 5G will offer support for N3, N5, N28, N40, and N78 bands. This leads us to believe that Jio’s 5G service, which will likely launch alongside the upcoming phone, should be available for all the other 5G devices that support these bands.

JioPhone Next

Android Central further reveals that the JioPhone 5G will pack a 5,000mAh battery with 18W fast charging support, a USB Type-C port, a 13MP primary camera, and an 8MP selfie shooter. Talking about the design, the publication notes that the JioPhone 5G will sport a much more modern design when compared to older devices from the company. It will feature thin bezels at the top and bottom, a hole-punch cutout for the selfie camera, and rounded edges.

In terms of software, the JioPhone 5G will run Android 11 (Go edition) out of the box with a couple of tweaks, including an always-on Google Assistant, text-to-speech support, instant translate via Google Lens and Google Translate, and integration with various Indic languages. It will also come with Jio’s suite of apps pre-installed.

It’s worth mentioning that Jio hasn’t prototyped the device yet, so it may not feature these exact specifications by the time it hits the market. On top of that, Jio is reportedly planning to launch multiple SKUs under the JioPhone 5G moniker, which will likely offer different screen sizes and specs.

At the moment, we don’t have pricing and availability details for the device. We expect Jio to share more information about the JioPhone 5G in the coming months.

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Sony’s Android 12 update has separate toggles for Wi-Fi and Data, but only if you factory reset

Android 12 introduces a streamlined Internet quick settings panel for controlling Wi-Fi and mobile data. Many users aren’t a fan of this change as it adds an extra step to enable/disable Wi-Fi and mobile data. Sony also thinks this change is a bit intuitive as the latest Android 12 update for its Xperia phones ships with separate Wi-Fi and data toggles.

Sony recently rolled out a stable Android 12 update to the Xperia 1 III and Xperia 5 III. As always, Sony’s new software skin is pretty close to stock Android, save for one change: it doesn’t feature the new Internet tile. As spotted by Redditor /uChiron_89, Sony’s Android 12 update ships with separate toggles for Wi-Fi and mobile data. However as pointed out by the user, due to a bug these toggles aren’t accessible out-of-the-box; You’ll have to perform a factory reset to enable them.

 

If you recently updated your Xperia 1 III or Xperia 5 III to Android 12 and don’t see separate toggles, as shown above, you can try factory resetting your phone.

Pixel owners and those running AOSP-based custom ROMs can also restore old Wi-Fi/data quick toggles with a simple ADB workaround. If you’re interested, you can check out our step-by-step guide here.

The Android 12 update for the Xperia 1 III and Xperia 5 III has rolled out widely. The update comes with the build number 61.1.A.1.149 and among other changes, also includes the December 2021 Android security patches. In case you haven’t got the OTA notification on your Xperia 1 III/5 III yet, you can manually check for the update by heading to the phone’s Settings and then heading to the Software update section.

After installing the Android 12 update, Xperia owners can look forward to many new features and enhancements including a brand new Material You design, revamped Quick Settings panel, Privacy Dashboard, updated home screen widgets, scrolling screenshots, and more.

The post Sony’s Android 12 update has separate toggles for Wi-Fi and Data, but only if you factory reset appeared first on xda-developers.

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