Google recently rolled out a new firmware update for its Nest Hub and Nest Hub Max smart displays. The update (v1.46) introduced a number of interface and usability changes, including a few minor tweaks to the System Settings, new display settings, lighting controls, and more. Now, according to a recent blog post, the company has started testing a new simpler UI designed for the less tech-savvy users.
The new UI aims to make setting up a new Nest Hub even easier for elderly users and it includes a pre-loaded shortlist of contacts that’s aimed at making video calling a simpler process. The UI also includes new “What can you do?” cards that act as shortcuts for showing weather reports, setting alarms, or playing relaxing sounds, allowing users to make the most out of their Nest Hubs with minimal effort.
The easy-to-use UI is part of a new initiative under which Google is giving nearly 1,000 Nest Hub Max displays to residents in seven Merrill Gardens retirement communities in Washington State. The initiative is expected to help the residents easily connect with their friends and family during the COVID-19 induced lockdown. The blog post also notes that the new UI has been designed in a way that preserves privacy for residents, with all the devices managed on Nest’s fleet management system and running in a “signed out” mode, in which no audio is stored and all activity is anonymous. As of now, the company has released no information about a broader rollout for the new Nest Hub UI.
At this point, we know pretty much everything about the Google Pixel 4a. We know how the photos coming out of its camera look like, we know where it’s gonna stand in terms of performance and we also know the probable pricing. However, there’s an interesting tidbit that flew under our radar. As it turns out, the Pixel 4a will miss out on a feature that has been part of the Pixel lineup since the Pixel 2: Active Edge squeeze feature.
Stephen Hall from 9to5Googlerevealed in a tweet that the Google Pixel 4a will not feature Active Edge gestures. Our Editor-in-Chief Mishal Rahman was able to confirm this news through Julio Lusson who has a pre-production unit of Pixel 4a in his possession — the same guy who gave us an early look of the camera performance and device performance. The screenshot provided by Julio shows that the option to enable the Active Edge feature has been removed from the Gesture section.
Active Edge is a feature that made its debut on the Google Pixel 2 and 2 XL and has been present on every Pixel phone since then, including the Pixel 3 series, Pixel 3a series, and Pixel 4 series. The feature came from Google’s acquisition of HTC — HTC flagships such as HTC U11 and U12 had a similar feature called Edge Sense. The feature lets you squeeze the sides of the phone to invoke certain actions, which in the case of Pixel phones is to launch the Google Assistant.
The Pixel 4a could be the first Pixel phone in a while without Active Edge. Google may have removed it to save cost and/or they may have removed it because it’s no longer needed since you can launch the Google Assistant using a diagonal swipe with gestures, and soon, with a double tap on the rear of the phone.
It’s unclear whether Google will ditch the Active Edge feature on the upcoming Google Pixel 5 as well — we won’t be too surprised if that turns out to be the case, though.
What are your thoughts on Google’s decision to remove the Active Edge functionality? Did you use it extensively on your Pixel phone? Let us know in the comments below.
Earlier this month, MediaTek announced its new Dimensity 1000 Plus flagship chipset, featuring support for 144Hz displays. At the time, Vivo’s sub-brand iQOO had revealed that it was already working on a new phone based on MediaTek’s latest chipset but we had no further information about the upcoming device. Just a few weeks since MediaTek’s announcement, iQOO has now officially unveiled the new iQOO Z1 — its latest flagship smartphone featuring the Dimensity 1000 Plus chip.
Vivo iQOO Z1 Specifications
Specification
iQOO Z1 5G
Dimensions and Weight
163.97 x 75.53 x 8.93 mm
194.78g
Display
6.57″ FHD+ (2400 x 1080) IPS
20:9 aspect ratio
Punch-hole display
HDR10;
144Hz Refresh Rate
SoC
MediaTek Dimensity 1000 Plus
4xARM Cortex A-77 @2.6GHz
4xARM Cortex-A55 @2.0GHz
Mali-G77 GPU
RAM and Storage
6GB LPDDR4X + 128GB UFS 3.1
8GB + 128GB
8GB + 256GB
Battery & Charging
4,500 mAh battery
44W Super FlashCharge fast charging
Rear Camera
Photo:
Primary: 48MP, f/1.79
Secondary: 8MP, f/2.2, wide-angle
Tertiary: 2MP, f/2.4, macro camera
Front Camera
16MP, f/2.0
Other Features
3.5mm headphone jack
Bluetooth 5.0
Wi-Fi-6
Dual-frequency GPS
Side-mounted Fingerprint Scanner
Android Version
iQOO UI 1.0 based on Android 10
Network
5G: n1/n3/n41/n77/n78/n79
4G+: B1/B3/B39/B40/B41/B38
4G FDD LTE: B1/B2/B3/B4/B5/B8/B18/B19/B25/B26
4G TDD LTE: B34/B39/B40/B41/B38
The new iQOO Z1 is a 5G-enabled device based on the Dimensity 1000 Plus platform, which features support for dual-mode SA/NSA 5G, WiFi 6, and a 144Hz high refresh rate FHD+ display.
The device features a design similar to that of the iQOO Neo3 5G, which was launched late last month, with curved edges on the back and a rectangular camera module. The Dimensity 1000 Plus chip is accompanied by up to 8GB of LPDDR4x RAM and up to 256GB of UFS 2.1 storage.
In the camera department, the iQOO Z1 features a triple camera setup on the back with a 48MP primary sensor, an 8MP ultra-wide camera, and a 2MP macro camera. Over on the front, the device has a single 16MP selfie shooter in the top right corner of the display.
Powering the device is a 4,500mAh battery with support for 44W fast wired charging that is capable of charging the device up to 50% in just about 20 minutes. In terms of software, the iQOO Z1 runs iQOO UI, which is a fork of Vivo’s Funtouch OS, based on Android 10.
Pricing and Availability
The iQOO Z1 5G will be available in three different variants priced as following:
6GB+ 128GB — CNY 2198 (~$309)
8GB + 128GB — CNY 2498 (~$351)
8GB + 256GB — CNY 2798 (~$394)
The device is already up for pre-booking on Vivo’s official website and it will also be available for pre-booking on other eCommerce platforms starting from May 25th. The device will be available for purchase across all major online channels in the region starting from June 1st.
The iQOO Z1 will be available in two color variants — Space Blue and Galaxy Silver — along with a bright yellow special edition One Piece variant that features the One Piece skull and bones logo on the back.
Along with the iQOO Z1, the company has also released a few accessories for the device. These include 3D texturized covers, a Bluetooth controller with an analog joystick, and a pair of neckband-style wireless earbuds. The accessories will go on sale alongside the device and will be available at a discounted price when purchased with an iQOO Z1.
Motorola has been a pioneer in the mobile phone industry, shaping several trends such as the advents of handheld phones, sleek clamshell and candy bar phones, and even affordable yet powerful smartphones. Over the last decade, however, its popularity declined due to the competition from Chinese brands like Xiaomi, OPPO, or Vivo, especially in the Asian markets. While it is still one of the most reliable brands in the LATAM region and parts of Europe, Motorola only owns a small share of the smartphone market in India. After some years of struggling with the competition, withdrawing from the flagship segment, and strictly focussing on mid-rangers in pretty much every region, Motorola made a comeback to the flagship category with the Motorola Edge and the Edge+. Out of the two, the superior variant i.e. the Motorola Edge+ is now coming to India.
The Motorola Edge+ is a hardcore flagship that is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 mobile platform. It features an attention-grabbing 6.7-inch OLED “waterfall” display with a hole-punch camera and a 90º curve, which also gives the smartphone its name. The display also has a refresh rate of 90Hz resulting in smooth animations while the HDR10+ rating ensures crisp visuals while watching OTT content. The display also supports virtual triggers along the curve of the display and these can act as shoulder buttons in games or as a launcher shortcut otherwise.
Along with the Snapdragon 865 on Motorola Edge+, there’s 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM and 256GB of UFS 3.0 storage. The X55 modem on the Snapdragon 865 also adds support for mm-wave and sub-6GHz 5G connectivity.
Besides its performance capabilities, another highlight of the Motorola Edge+ is its rear camera setup, which comprises a 108MP Samsung ISOCELL Bright HMX as the primary sensor. The 108MP camera is complemented by a 16MP ultra-wide-angle camera which doubles as a macro camera. In addition to these two, the Motorola Edge+ comes with an 8MP telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom. Taking a more practical approach as compared to other OEMs selling devices with Snapdragon 865, Motorola is offering 6K video recording on the Egde+ instead of the traditional 8K. The camera on the front uses a 25MP sensor along with an f/2.0 lens setup.
The Motorola Edge+ comes with a chunky 5,000mAh battery along with 18W fast wired and 15W wireless charging. The smartphone will also support reverse wireless charging at 5W. Unlike other champions in the game, the Motorola Edge+ retains a 3.5mm headphone jack for audio.
In terms of software, Motorola Edge+ is running Android 10 with an almost-stock Android UI. The company has also added an app called Moto UX, which is a variation of the Pixel Themes app. This allows users to change elements like accent colors, icon shapes, fonts, etc. The phone will be available in two colors – Smoky Sangria and Thunder Grey.
Pricing & Availability
The Motorola Edge+ will be available in India starting at ₹74,999 (~$990 ). It will be available for pre-booking via Flipkart starting today i.e. May 19th and will be available for sale starting May 26th. For users with ICICI cards, there will be an instant cashback of ₹7,500 (10% of the price).
Samsung is expected to launch the Galaxy Note 20 series later this year in August and we’ve already seen quite a few rumors about the upcoming devices. Earlier this year in March, the kernel source code for the Galaxy S20 revealed that the Galaxy Note 20 series will feature the Snapdragon 865 SoC. Shortly thereafter, we learned that the global variant of the Galaxy Note 20 series might debut with a new Exynos 992 chip. And, most recently, rumors suggested that the high-end variant in the Note 20 series will feature a high refresh rate 120Hz display. Now, even more leaks about the upcoming Galaxy Note 20 series have surfaced online, revealing details about the design, cameras, and battery specifications.
According to a recent report from Android Authority, CEO of Display Chain Consultants, Ross Young, has revealed some key information about Samsung’s upcoming flagships in a recent interview with Greggles TV. In the interview, Young revealed that the Galaxy Note 20 series will be the first to feature Qualcomm’s second-gen 3D Sonic Max in-display fingerprint reader. For the unaware, the ultrasonic fingerprint reader was first unveiled back in December last year and it’s capable of reading two fingerprints at the same time. Young further revealed that the upcoming devices will feature the same hole-punch display as the previous Galaxy Note 10 series, up to 16GB of RAM and slightly larger batteries ranging between 4,000mAh and 5,000mAh.
A separate report from Android Central claims that the Galaxy Note 20 Plus will feature a 4,500mAh battery, much like the Galaxy S20 Plus. The report cites information obtained by Galaxy Club, which further reveals that the Galaxy Note 20 Plus will feature a 108MP primary camera, much like the Galaxy S20 Ultra. However, renowned leakster Ice Universe claims that it will include a new sensor to assist in focusing to address the focusing issues that plagued the Galaxy S20 Ultra. The leaks also suggest that the Galaxy Note 20 Plus will be the first phone from Samsung to feature an LTPO display with a variable refresh rate, which is expected to improve the device’s battery life by 15-20%.
Along with the aforementioned information, Ice Universe has also shared two images of the Galaxy Note 20 that shed some light on the smartphone’s design. As you can see in the attached images, the Galaxy Note 20 looks a lot like its predecessor, with a boxy design, a single hole-punch cutout for the selfie camera, and a triple camera setup on the back within a rectangular camera module.
The OnePlus 8 Pro is OnePlus’ latest flagship and inarguably the best smartphone yet from the company. Users have been pushing for better camera performance on OnePlus flagships, and the OEM seems to have finally delivered with the OnePlus 8 Pro. Instead of using a 108MP Samsung ISOCELL sensor or a 64MP Sony IMX686 sensor, the OnePlus 8 Pro packs in a 48MP Sony IMX689 primary sensor, the consensus on which is that it is pretty good. Alongside this, the device also has a 48MP ultra-wide sensor, an 8MP telephoto camera, and a new 5MP Color Filter camera. The last sensor was written off as a gimmick until users found that they could see through some plastic objects, and shockingly, also through some thin clothing. Now, OnePlus has announced that it will disable the color filter camera temporarily in a future update.
The Color Filter camera was marketed as being able to apply certain false-color camera filters on the shot, extending it beyond what could be achieved through software filters. Using the new Photochrome mode on the OnePlus 8 Pro, the sensor could be used for infrared photography. The same use case was then found to be useful for seeing through some thin plastics, some fluids like red wine and coke, and through very thin clothing. The last bit is where it gets problematic, as it could possibly enable perverse and depraved behavior that violates the privacy of individuals. Needless to say, there was some action needed on this end.
In a Weibo post, OnePlus has apologized for this and announced that it would temporarily disable the color filter camera. The update to disable this camera will be delivered within a week in the Chinese region, and we presume the same will be rolled out to other regions as well. OnePlus hopes that this will be a temporary measure, and they will work on ensuring that the privacy concerns are addressed before re-enabling the color filter camera.
We do appreciate the company addressing these concerns. But, in the same conversation, this also entirely disables the functionality of the color filter camera, which is a hardware component that users are paying for, downgrading the OnePlus 8 Pro from a “quad-camera phone” to a “triple-camera phone” while still burdening it with dead weight in terms of component and cost. OnePlus should have been careful with the features it chooses to integrate into its phones, especially if it requires additional specialized hardware.
In a bid to curb the spread of misinformation during these trying times, several tech giants banded together earlier this year to provide users with actual, verified facts about the COVID-19 situation and take down any misleading information from their respective platforms. Google, being Google, automated this process and the results have been quite undesirable for some app developers. According to a recent tweet from the developer of popular podcast app Podcast Addict, Google has erroneously suspended the app from the Play Store for hosting podcasts that talk about COVID-19.
Google has just suspended Podcast Addict again. This time for having Podcasts about Covid 19… Are you for real Google. Can you please check your own Google Podcast App, your search engine,Youtube, … first
In a notification regarding the suspension, Google cites Section 8.3 of its Developer Distribution Agreement which was recently updated to make it more difficult for malicious apps to take advantage of the increasing number of searches about the ongoing pandemic. The updated policy requires developers to prove that their app is either endorsed by a government to publish content related to COVID-19 or take down all references to the pandemic from the app. While updating the policy to limit the spread of fake news is great on Google’s part, removing an app for hosting third-party content related to COVID-19 is a bit of an oversight. Because if this is intended behavior, then Google should also remove its own apps, like YouTube and Google News, for hosting third-party COVID-19 content.
Since we’ve now established that this isn’t intended behavior, it’s safe to assume that Google’s automated review process just spotted mentions of coronavirus in the Podcast Addict app and delivered a false positive, leading to its suspension. And much like the recent Pushbullet and Join Chrome extension fiasco, Google’s communication with the developer regarding the issue was less than ideal.
When the developer took to Twitter to highlight the issue, Android’s AVP Hiroshi Lockheimer apologized to the developer for the false flag and said that the app shouldn’t have been pulled from the Play Store.
Apologies to Podcast Addict fans today. We are still sorting out kinks in our process as we combat Covid misinformation, but this app should not have been removed. Carry on with your podcasts, folks!
The Podcast Addict developer then confirmed that his appeal had been accepted and Google required them to “fix the issue” and submit the app for review once again.
Good news, Google accepted my appeal.!
Now if I understand correctly I need to fix the issue and submit the app again
So basically I added an extra space at the end of the app listing and pressed on ReSubmit. We’ll see what happens now pic.twitter.com/FKomXQ2jI6
In their latest tweet, the developer revealed that the app has been resubmitted for review without any changes and it seems to be up on the Play Store once again. In case you wish to download the app, you can do so by following the Play Store link below.
