Latest Tech News

Nvidia will offer at least 45 different Max-Q laptops or configurations this year up from 19 in the previous year. The fast-growing gaming laptop market stands in contrast to the contracting Ultrabook market.

A new Final Fantasy XV benchmark has been shared online that shows the upcoming Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 performing reasonably well in the 1920x1080 High Quality test. The graphics card manages a score of 3803, which puts it firmly in the middle of the points range for a standard level of performance.

In what will surely go down as one of the biggest fails in tech history, Apple has quietly announced that it has cancelled its Qi-enabled, long overdue, AirPower charging mat. Apple quietly made the dumbfounding announcement in a written statement to TechCrunch.

It might not be that surprising to learn that Nvidia is willing to enter the AI-powered smart home device market, since the company already has a division focused on self-driving car technologies. However, Project R.O.N. is also set to combine AI-powered assistance with some sort of holographic projection, and this combination could make Nvidia's device stand out from other solutions like Google's Home and Amazon Alexa.

The 5G variant of the Samsung Galaxy S10 will be released in South Korea on April 5, 2019. A news outlet in that country has claimed to have uncovered pricing details on this flagship option. It will start at the equivalent of about US$1285.

Apple's original AirPods snatched the majority of the true wireless earphone market at the end of 2018, according to Counterpoint Research. Its latest report on the subject put the earbuds' share at 60%. Jabra, Samsung, JLabs and Bose provided the remainder of the top 5 during the time studied.

Lyft has successfully completed its IPO in the US, and is trading on the Nasdaq platform as of today (March 29, 2019). It had been estimated to start at US$72 per share; however, this value is now closer to $88. This, then, is the most successful tech offering since Snap - but Uber is hot on its heels.

Apple puts the maximum RAM of its new 27-inch iMac at 64GB. However, the memory kit-maker OWC has confirmed that the PC is indeed compatible with twice this value. Therefore, it now sells upgrade kits for this PC that may allow a user to add 120GB of RAM to an iMac base model.

OPPO's Reno sub-brand smartphones are expected to launch in a few weeks, and the models recently received the mandatory TENAA certification that also leaked most of the specs. Reno is set to feature high-end Snapdragon 855 SoC models, but TENAA reveals that there will be mid-range variants powered by the Snapdragon 710 SoC, as well. These will get only a dual-camera setup on the back, plus the 16 MP pop-up selfie cam, and a smaller 3,680 mAh battery.

Squares Ahoy! A set of schematics have leaked online, which reinforce that the next iPhones will have a huge square rear-facing camera housing akin to the Huawei Mate 20 Pro.

Patents filed by Sony describing cross-platform play and digital in-game trading have surfaced leading to speculation that the upcoming PlayStation 5 console could possibly support these features. Details of how Sony would be implementing them is still unclear but the company could leverage its existing PlayStation Now service to enable these features with the support of developers.

New information about a Nubia gaming smartphone that is currently known by the model number NX629J has surfaced online. This smartphone is expected to be the upcoming Nubia Red Magic 3 that has been recently teased on Weibo by the company’s co-founder. If the specifications are accurate, it should completely eclipse the performance of the Red Magic Mars.

Sony has announced a “realignment” that involves Sony Mobile, the Imaging Products & Solutions Business, and the Home Entertainment & Sound Business. The merger will create Sony’s Electronics Products & Solutions Business. Some see it as Sony’s attempt to hide the massive failure of Sony Mobile to compete with rivals such as Samsung, Huawei, and Apple.

Not every enthusiast gamer wants to pay for per-key RGB lighting, G-Sync, or Thunderbolt 3. Gigabyte has removed some of these auxiliary features from its X5 successor to make the new Aorus 15 laptop several hundred dollars cheaper without impacting core gaming performance.

A couple of videos showing some bug testing on what is believed to be the Google “Atlas” Chromebook have been leaked. It was previously believed that Atlas would be part of the Pixel line, possibly even a sequel to the Pixelbook. However, clear design differences suggest the Atlas could actually be a new premium Chromebook.

Best Buy is currently offering an incredible sale on the first generation of Microsoft’s Surface Laptop. However, stocks seem to be selling out quickly, so if you’re interested in either an i5 or i7 variant of this device you better hurry fast. Up to a whopping US$575 has been slashed from the usual listed price for certain models.

Oppo’s forthcoming Reno flagship smartphone has been leaked in full by via a case maker through Slashleaks. The device shows a premium truly all-screen smartphone that takes a unique approach to incorporating a pop-up selfie camera.

Despite Apple’s reputation for build quality and design it has been having a few quality issues of late, particularly with regard to its MacBook line. A search on Apple’s website has revealed all of the products in its lineup that are currently eligible for its “Exchange and Repair Extension” programs.

According to prominent leaker Ice universe, the President of Samsung Greater China announced at an event that the company is planning to bring 25 W charging and a new low-light camera mode to the Galaxy S10. The device is supposedly already capable of charging at 25 W, but Samsung has limited it to 15 W in its firmware.

The Galaxy S10+ is at the top end of Samsung's latest flagship smartphone line. Despite the early point in the year, Consumer Reports has named it the best device in its category. This assessment was made based on the S10+'s cameras, battery life and durability.

TCO Certified is a body that assesses the durability, recyclability and upgradability of desktops and laptops. The goal of this process is to improve sustainability in the IT industry. TCO claims that its 8th-generation criteria are the most stringent yet, and that 3 OEMs in particular have beaten them.

The recently discovered patent shows outwards-folding sides akin to Xiaomi's own foldable concept. There are important differences, however. Each of the foldable side seems to feature a battery pack, and the screen has a reinforced rear mid-section. There are no ports, buttons, or cameras suggesting that the model could feature wireless charging, gesture controls, and in-display cameras.

The 8-inch Galaxy Tab A is getting updated specs that include a mid-range Exynos 7885 SoC, 3 GB of RAM, 32 GB of storage, and the usual 4,200 mAh battery. The IPS touchscreen comes with 1920 x 1200 resolution and supports the latest S-Pen digitizer. The imagining setup only includes a 5 MP selfie cam and an 8 MP rear cam.

The G8 ThinQ is LG's latest flagship, and introduces its Crystal Sound technology among other features. This smartphone will become available in the United States from April 11, 2019. However, those who want it on Sprint can pre-order it from tomorrow (March 29).

Targus, a name in the travel and laptop-carrying accessory space, has developed the Mobile ViP+ Backpack. It integrates Qi wireless charging, so that a phone such as the Samsung Galaxy S10+ can have a dedicated pocket within the new bag that secures and charges it at the same time. This new backpack also has RFID shielding and airport-cart compatibility.

Jabra has released its latest generation of neckbuds, the Evolve 65e. The audio company claims that this wireless set of earphones has consumer-grade comfort with professional levels of audio. This product has attained Skype for Business and UC certification, which may appeal to the business customer in need of mobile connectivity.

Sony's RX0 line is the company's take on the compact camera. Its latest version, the RX0 II, crams 4K recording, advanced image processing and electronic stabilization into "the world's smallest and lightest premium compact camera". This device is also fit for outdoors videography, and it comes with water, dust and shock resistance.

According to a pattern of online user reports, the smaller variant of the iPad Pro 2018 is afflicted by a bug that throws its touch-responses off when a glass screen protector is installed. This results in a host of ill effects, from ghost touches to diminished passcode-entering accuracy. However, iOS 12.2 reportedly includes a fix for these issues.

The new golf watch from Garmin features a 1.2-inch touchscreen, a GPS tracker along with golfing features like AutoShot and Green View with which you can manually position your pin and check distances or obstacles.

The new, ultra-compact Vnopn K1 does without a fan and has no moving parts, which helps keep its form factor down. Vnopn has equipped the K1 with an AMD processor too unlike many other PCs of its size.

HMD Global has confirmed that it will launch its next device, the egregiously-named Nokia X71, on April 2, at an event in Taiwan. The X71 will be positioned directly below the Nokia 9 Pureview and will feature a punch-hole display and, perhaps, a triple rear camera setup with one of the sensors being a 48 MP unit.

At MWC, Lenovo announced their new 2019 ThinkPad business lineup. Roughly a month later, the majority of the new ThinkPad laptops are now available, though all of the new models still miss some hardware options.

Shortly after the release of the Huawei P30 flagship, an official of the Chinese company, Bruce Li, confirmed that the Huawei Mate 30 is currently being tested. He also added that — if everything works as planned — this next-gen phablet could be hit the market in September - October.

Facebook has announced that it is finally cracking down on white nationalism and white separatism on both Facebook and Instagram. The move follows live streaming of an attack on two New Zealand mosques which was also shared repeatedly on the social network via various groups.

Apple, as many will be aware, rarely if ever offers discounts on its products. However, in further confirmation that iPhone sales have cooled, major Australian retailer JB Hi-Fi has slashed an incredible AU$320 (US$226) off the price of the iPhone Xs 512 GB and iPhone Xs Max 512 GB models.

Office Depot, Inc. and Support.com, Inc. have agreed to pay a combined total of US$35 million to the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) after being accused of tricking customers into paying for unnecessary computer repair services. Support.com has been involved in a similar scareware scandal before, in conjunction with AOL’s Computer Checkup service.

A recent video leaked onto YouTube showed off a Samsung Galaxy Fold smartphone with a rather worrying visible crease running down the center of the display. However, a communications manager for Samsung has offered reassurance that buyers of the Galaxy Fold will not encounter the issue faced by the device in the controversial clip.

Some new details about the upcoming Google Pixel 3a and 3a XL smartphones have been leaked. Apparently, one or both of the new devices will be offered in an “iris” color, which is the word specifically used to describe the choice. The same source has suggested a price for the Pixel 3a, and it might not be as cheap as expected.

Xiaomi has shared a new short promotional video of its upcoming foldable smartphone. The device still looks fantastic and is distinctly different to the foldable devices produced by Samsung and Huawei thanks to its unique folding mechanism. But the simple clip does raise a couple of concerns about the Chinese manufacturer’s creation.

Third time’s not the charm for Apple it seems when it comes to its troublesome butterfly mechanism-based MacBook keyboards. The company has admitted that users are still experiencing issues with the redesign that was meant to end the problems customers reported with the first two generations.

The backdoor-like vulnerability was discovered through the Windows Defender ATP kernel sensors back in January, but Microsoft did not alert the media. Instead, the company contacted Huawei directly and a patch was promptly released. Microsoft presumably did not want to add to the list of serious allegation currently targeting Huawei.

Even though Intel warned that the 14 nm CPU shortage could continue until the end of the first half of 2019, the company appears to be ready to launch a new stepping for the gen 9 Core processors in just a few weeks. This information is confirmed by ASUS and Gigabyte, which already updated their BIOS for the 300-series motherboards. Gigabyte even leaked the full list of R0 CPUs.

2019 may be the year of the first-generation foldable smartphones from familiar brands. They are likely to be linked to extra-large price-tags; however, a prominent industry figure has predicted that they may shrink steadily as time goes on. Unfortunately, a new report may have put the kibosh on that idea.

Some owners of the new, super-expensive Galaxy S10+ have taken to Reddit, as well as Samsung's own forums, to point out that their SIM-based functions are poor on certain carriers. A media outlet has tested the phone on this issue, and concluded that there may be some weight to the reports.

Users in China have reportedly started receiving the beta version of HydrogenOS based on Android 9 Pie. This comes after several months of internal testing of the Chinese-exclusive ROM indicating that the final version is not far off. OnePlus is yet to announce the roll out of OxygenOS beta based on Android Pie but given that the company has recently invited testers for a closed beta, global roll out can be expected soon.

A recent legal ruling gave Qualcomm the right to force iPhones off its OEM's own shelves in China. Now, the chip-maker may get the chance to do the same in the US. A judge from the country's International Trade Commission has ruled that the Apple infringed on a patent that applies to its most recent mobile SoCs, leading to a recommendation that their use should be prevented.

Vivaldi 2.4 comes with no less than 42 bug fixes, as well as 9 new features. The most important changes are the ability to remove buttons from the Navigation Toolbar and move them between the Navigation and Status bars, as well as the introduction of multiple user profiles — each with a separate set of Bookmarks, Extensions, history, and so on.

Apple Music on Android has been more popular than you would think. New data from SensorTower shows that since it has launched, over 40 million users have downloaded the app from the Google Play Store.

The 2.4-pound Xiaomi Mi Notebook Air (2019) is now official in China and comes with Harman Kardon audio with DTS surround, fast charging, and more. The starting price (in China) is the equivalent of US$536 and this amount would get you the model with Intel Core m3-8100Y/4 GB RAM/128 GB storage.

The direct successor of the original Chromebook Flip by Asus, namely the Chromebook Flip C434, was unveiled back in January, at the CES 2019 trade show in Las Vegas. Now, this Chrome OS convertible is finally available for purchase directly from Asus at US$569.99 (Intel Core m3-8100Y inside, with i5 and i7 variants to follow).