The Core i5-8265U brings just marginal performance benefits by up to 12 percent at best over the last generation Core i5-8250U or Core i7-8550U. Users who want the latest XPS 13 should be drawn in by the re-positioned webcam and not by the new Intel Whiskey Lake-U processors.

The Asus ZenFone 5Z is finally getting the Android 9.0 Pie update after several weeks of beta testing. Apart from updating the base Android version, this update also brings a new contextual pop-up volume bar and a new Magnifier feature for easier copy-paste. The update is currently being rolled out in phases and is expected to reach everyone in the next few weeks.

The new MateBook 13 has an unlikely competitor because of its full-power 25 W GeForce MX150 GPU. It's unquestionably faster than the average Ultrabook, but can it beat the $1600 Razer Blade Stealth?

Xiaomi's Pocophone F1 has been hailed for offering incredibly high value for money. The device was tested by DxOMark, and managed to impress, outperforming devices like the Galaxy Note 8 in certain departments.

The Honor 7X was launched on Android Nougat and received the update to Oreo last year. The device is currently receiving the Pie beta in China, with other parts of the world billed to get theirs later this year. Pie would be the second major update the phone receives, which is impressive considering it launched with an MSRP of just US$200.

The successor of the 18.4-inch Samsung Galaxy View has recently surfaced on Geekbench. The Galaxy View 2 runs Android 8.1 Oreo-based firmware and apparently features a 17.5-inch display. This large tablet for media consumption is rumored to arrive soon in the US via AT&T, but nothing is official yet.

Released back in September 2012, Internet Explorer 10 still receives support from Microsoft, although it has been succeeded by Internet Explorer 11 and Microsoft Edge. However, Microsoft has finally made the official announcement: Internet Explorer 10 will be laid to rest in a year from now.

Apple’s iPhone revenue plunged a precipitous 15 percent on a year-over-year basis for the holiday quarter, as it had indicated in a rare revenue warning to investors. Despite this, it remains the second largest quarter in Apple’s history as other areas of its business managed to keep the overall slide to just 5 percent year-over-year.

The Huawei MAR-LX1M was now spotted on the Huawei website, although the full product page is not up yet. However, its UA profile confirms that this handset will come with Android 9.0 Pie onboard — with EMUI on top, of course — and features a full HD+ display. Given this screen resolution, it is likely that the MAR-LX1M will launch as a P30 Lite variant.

Samsung Electronics has posted a news item to announce the fact that mass production has started on its 1 TB embedded Universal Flash Storage (eUFS) solution. The 1 TB eUFS has been measured producing a sequential read speed of 1000 MB/s and a sequential write speed of 260 MB/s. As Samsung carefully points out, this makes it faster than a typical SATA SSD.

As the demand for OLED displays continues to grow, Taiwanese manufacturers are stepping up to the plate and adjusting their business structures for increased production. Many companies, such as AU Optronics and Novatek Microelectronics, are expecting a massive boom in OLED sales and are more than willing to provide the necessary supply.

A recent report in the South Korean outlet ETNews has asserted that the G8 ThinQ will be the first flagship to be released by LG this year. However, it will be passed over for 5G compatibility in favor of the V50 ThinQ, which will be launched a month after the G8. The report also speculated that LG will discontinue the G ThinQ series next year.

Prices for RTX 2060 laptops are reasonable, but be prepared to pay well over $2000 for anything with an RTX 2070 GPU. As expected, both MSI and Asus have the widest selections of RTX laptops available.

The Austrian company Noctua has issued a press release to announce the introduction of the new NT-H2 thermal compound. The award-winning cooler manufacturer claims the second generation of its “enthusiast-grade” paste managed to deliver up to 2 °C lower temperatures in the firm’s tests than the predecessor NT-H1. The thermal paste will be available in 3.5 g and 10 g packages.

The Lenovo Z5 Pro GT is the first phone to be released with the 2019 flagship Snapdragon 855 chipset. It had its first general release today (January 29) in China. The OEM claims that it took only 32 seconds for the Z5 Pro GT to sell out online.

TSMC confirmed that around 10,000 wafers were compromised, but the Taiwanese company has yet to make an official statement about the full extent of the damages and the exact circumstances of the incident. The unfortunate event could create AMD / Nvidia GPU shortages and artificial MSRP increases in the coming months.

Besides integrating UHD Blu-Ray players or DVD writer drives, the new VivoMini HTPCs come with internal PSUs and generous room for storage expansions. These mini PCs are powered by Intel's 35 W Core T CPUs that bridge the gap between the ULV chips and the desktop processors. Additionally, there is support for up to 32 GB of RAM and up to 4 HDDs.

The mobile versions of Fortnite (those that work on the Android and Apple platforms) now allow the use of Bluetooth controllers rather than on-screen controls. This new level of support comes with the 7.30 patch update, which also adds the 60Hz support for select Android devices. It also offers the Chiller grenade, a new, seasonal, ranged weapon.

The Razer Phone 2 could be a solid option for fans of mobile gaming on Android. However, it may be less attractive to those who also like to have root access. This could lose them one of the Phone 2's main unique points: the Chroma LED logo. A senior XDA member has addressed this with his non-proprietary version of the app needed to control it.

A pair of patents filed with the World Intellectual Property Office (WIPO) indicate that OPPO intends to release a phone with an on-trend punch-hole selfie camera. In this case, however, it seems the OEM plans to disguise this next-gen feature as an icon in the phone's UI. This icon may also be accompanied by others in a row at the top of the screen.

Some alarming reports of a serious error in Group FaceTime associated with iOS 12.1 or later, have emerged. This bug allows an iPhone user to activate the call microphone of a second iPhone, whether its own user is aware of this or not. Apple has announced that they are working on a solution, and has also addressed it in the interim by shutting the video-call service down on their end.

Last year's Mercury White Blade 15 was so successful that Razer will be toying with new color options to gauge user interest. Past Razer laptops have been shades of black, gray, and white and so the color pink will naturally spark the most excitement and discussion amongst the Razer fanbase.

The iPhone has had a bumpy couple of months. iOS 12.1.2, released last month, broke cellular connectivity for some users. The problem got so bad that Sprint issued a warning to its customers to wait on updating. There doesn't seem to be any relief in sight; not only does iOS 12.1.3 not bring a fix for the cellular issues, but the latest update has actually broken WiFi for several users in addition to cellular connectivity.

Intel has applied for a patent showing a unique take on the folding smartphone concept. Intel’s approach would see the device fold in three places allowing it to be used in multiple configurations.

The two may look similar, but they're actually quite different. The cheaper MateBook 13 is surprisingly the faster model by more than a wide margin while the MateBook X Pro has the larger and higher resolution display. Users should choose carefully depending on which features are more important.

Artificial Intelligence is getting better, but can humans stay ahead of the machines? Unity thinks so and is offering $100,000 in prizes to any developers that can code an AI to beat Obstacle Tower, a new game designed to specifically test AIs. The game features procedurally generated levels that change with each playthrough, presenting a major challenge for programs that thrive on repetition.

Samsung today officially announced its new Galaxy M10 and M20 smartphones, which are specifically designed for the Indian market and are pretty affordable. With these models, Samsung will be hoping to take back the lead in the rapidly growing Indian smartphone market.

A 13-count indictment has been announced against Huawei and the company’s CFO, Meng Wanzhou, mostly in relation to fraud. Two of the Chinese manufacturer’s affiliates, Huawei Device USA and Skycom Tech, have also been included in the charges. A separate 10-count indictment against the same firm was also unsealed, charging Huawei with theft of trade secrets among other things.

Nintendo has been mum on the development of Metroid Prime 4 since its announcement at E3 2017, but it looks like development has not been going well. In a video announcement, Shinya Takahashi stated that Nintendo has decided to restart development of Metroid Prime 4 and hand over the reins to Retro Studios, the development house behind the first three Metroid Prime games.

Nvidia has announced that the financial guidance for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2019 has been lowered. A forecast revenue figure of US$2.70 billion had previously been given, but this has now been reduced to US$2.20 billion. One of the reasons given for the disappointing update was the apparent sales figures for the RTX series based on Turing microarchitecture, which were weaker than expected.

While most people around the world are still waiting to get 5G access, T-Mobile and Metro are back with an accessory for their 600 MHz LTE network. The Coolpad Surf hotspot is capable of connecting up to 15 devices simultaneously and its 2,150 mAh battery can last for up to 5.3 hours of continuous use or 48 hours on standby.

The Nokia 1 Plus is a potential refresh or successor to the 1, an ultra-budget Android Go device. Images and specs purportedly associated with this new phone have surfaced online. According to them, the 1 Plus may gain a faster SoC and a more modern design compared to the 1. However, the two may remain similar in many aspects.

The widely respected Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has reduced his expectations for iPhone shipments in the first quarter of 2019 (1Q2019). However, he also projects that these numbers will pick up in 2Q2019. Kuo believes that up to 35 million iPhones will be sold in this quarter; however, this is still less than the general consensus on the same figure.

Huawei had previously outlined plans to update its late-2016 and early-2017 flagships - the P10 and Mate 9 series - to Android 9.0 (Pie) by March 2019. It appears the OEM is finally ready to make a start on these commitments with an update for Mate 9 users in China. This version of Pie includes new features such as Huawei HiVision.

Casio has updated its line of digital pianos with the Privia PX-S1000 and PX-S3000, 2 variants of what the company claims is the "world's slimmest grand piano". The new models use Smart Scaled Hammer Action to replicate the tactile feedback of real grand piano keys. This up-to-date type of digital keyboard also has Bluetooth and an iOS/Android app.

Although more images shot in various scenarios would be needed for a final decision, the image showing the same night scene as captured by the iPhone XS and the Pixel 3 that was posted on Twitter by Google's Marvin Chow has a clear winner. However, Apple still has to add a dedicated night mode to its handsets and, once that happens, things might change.

The significantly reduced base clock rate and TDP allow the mobile RTX 2080 to fit into a wider range of gaming laptop designs. Fortunately, memory bandwidth and number of CUDA cores remain unchanged.

Samsung has announced in a press release its intentions to become considerably more environmentally friendly. The company will ditch product plastic packaging and replace it with various alternatives, including paper, pulp, and other recycled materials. The smartphone manufacturer’s revised policy also means that phone chargers will lose their glossy finish.

Further leaks of Android Q, which can be run on devices such as the Pixel 3 line, may have uncovered more detail on the coming OS upgrade. It appears that Google has prepared a new font, called Arvolato, for the update. In addition, users may be able to roll back apps after they update, as well as block them from reading the contents of a clipboard.

Cricket Wireless can now offer the Nokia 3.1 Plus as a result of a new deal made with HMD Global. The budget smartphone will be sold at US$159.99 in its stores. However, it will have competition from the Alcatel Onyx, an equally budget device available at $119.99 through the same carrier.

XPS 15 9570 owners rejoice. We can confirm that Dell has finally fixed the NVIDIA GPU issue that has been plaguing some 9570 laptops for months with BIOS 1.7. Unfortunately, the update has introduced some fan peculiarities though.
Update: Dell has commented on the fan behaviour in BIOS 1.7.