Gadget

The release of the AirPower still remains on the table, despite having been cancelled last year. Now, a supposed prototype has been torn down to reveal just how complex Apple's charging pad was. An official canned advert is doing the rounds again too, underlining just how close Apple was to releasing the AirPower.

It has been reported that Apple is working on both a budget smartwatch and ultra-premium smartwatch for fans of the brand to choose from. Details of a supposed Apple Watch SE, which would replace the current Series 3 models, have been leaked, and images of an alleged new AW Gold Edition have also surfaced.

Huawei has developed a new pair of smart glasses in collaboration with Gentle Monster. The new glasses feature a range of smart features, including an integrated voice assistant and built-in microphones. The Huawei x Gentle Monster Eyewear II support touch controls, too.

A noted tipster has reported that Huawei will be using the “floating screen technology” that is expected to feature with the upcoming Huawei MateBook X Pro 2020 laptop in a cutting-edge smart TV that will be unveiled by the end of 2020. The so-called floating full-screen design means to eliminate bezels and device frames as much as possible.

Lenovo has revealed a new pair of its Yoga ANC Headphones. The over-ear headphones come in what Lenovo calls Shadow Black and offer up to 14 hours of battery life. The Yoga ANC Headphones will retail for US$149.99, making them a much cheaper alternative to the likes of the Bose 700, Surface Headphones 2 and Sony WH-1000XM4.

Xiaomi has revealed that it managed to sell 1,660 units of the 98-inch Redmi Smart TV Max in a single day thanks to the attractive combination of decent specifications and reasonable price (19,999 yuan; about US$2,877). The giant 4K Redmi Max 98 seems to be completely unrivalled in the domestic market at the moment.

Chargeasap, the maker of the Indiegogo hit the Flash power bank, is back on crowdfunding with another potentially groundbreaking power accessory. This Omega wall-wart has 2 versions: one that rated to charge at up to 100 watts (W), and one at 200W. It had a goal of US$10,000 on Kickstarter, but left this threshold behind a long time ago.

Xiaomi has been celebrating its 10th anniversary in business this week and has decided to issue its own pure gold commemorative coins as an expensive keepsake for fans. The company can afford to dabble in gold when it can boast of selling 1,000 units of the 98-inch Redmi Smart TV Max in just one minute at 19,999 yuan (US$2,877) apiece.

Several DualSense controllers seem to already be in circulation, as hands-on images of another example have been published online. The latest round of photos also show the battery capacity of the next-generation controller, and it is almost double the one in the original DualShock 4.

The award-winning Philips 279C9 not only has a 4K UHD display with DisplayHDR 400 certification, but also a USB Type-C port that supplies up to 65 W via USB Power Delivery. The monitor has four USB 3.2 Type-A ports too, along with two HDMI ports and a DisplayPort. The 400 cd/m² and AMD FreeSync monitor will be available from the end of August for £439 in the UK and €489 in the Eurozone.

The Cyberboard takes its inspiration from the Tesla Cybertruck and Cyberpunk. The mechanical keyboard features a striking design with configurable LEDs and has already raised over US$100,000 in crowdfunding. However, the Cyberboard costs an eye-watering US$410 and does not come with keycaps or switches.

After the release of the 65-inch Mi TV Master Series last month, Xiaomi is back with its second OLED TV yet. The new Mi TV Lux OLED Transparent Edition is, well, transparent, and probably does a great job of looking really cool. If you can afford the US$7,200 MSRP, that is.

NVIDIA has confirmed that it will be hosting a GeForce Special Event, but not on August 31. Instead, the event will occur on September 1 and will "highlight the company's latest innovations in gaming and graphics". According to a new rumour, AIB cards like the ASUS ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3080 Ti will be available from launch, too.

Xiaomi has just revealed the new Ninebot GoKart Pro Lamborghini Edition with yellow coloring, rear spoiler, and custom tires. The Lamborghini Edition of the Ninebot GoKart Pro can manage a top speed of 40 km/h (~25 mph), comes with a 432 Wh battery pack, and it will apparently go on sale with a price tag of 9,999 yuan (US$1,440).

E Ink has demonstrated the latest working prototype of its foldable display technology. The device also supports note taking via a stylus and points to what could be the near future for e-reading devices.

Huawei is planning to run its in-house HarmonyOS all of its future devices. A company executive confirmed that a smartwatch running the software is due to be released later this year. HarmonyOS will eventually make its way to Huawei's upcoming tablets, laptops, and even smartphones.

The lens specialist Sigma has released the new f/1.4 DG DN Art attachment for Leica L-mount and Sony E-mount full-frame cameras. With its new arrangement of aspherical, high-refraction and special low dispersion (SLD) elements, it may be well-equipped indeed for portrait shooting. It also has a button that either allows or denies the option of audible clicking in the aperture ring.

GoPro is an OEM nearly synonymous with outdoor pursuits and occupations. Therefore, it may come as no surprise that it posted a net loss of nearly US$51 million for the second quarter of 2020 (2Q2020). However, it is not all bad news for the popular action-cam brand: for example, its online sales model seems to be taking off.

According to a Weibo tipster, Huawei is reportedly working on a bezel-less “floating display” laptop with a 3K panel, offering a “more immersive viewing experience.” Does this mean that Black Mirror-esque bezel-less laptops are here to stay?

Xiaomi recently announced its smart Door and Window Sensor 2 for the Chinese market. The US$7 smart sensor carries forward the tech giant’s kitchen sink approach to tech releases, from premium TV and midrange phones all the way down to single-function IoT devices.

The Zero Terminal 3 is a compact mini-PC based on a Raspberry Pi. The device has a 1080p touchscreen, a built-in battery and a keyboard.

The UP Xtreme from AAEON and UP Board is a particularly powerful single-board computer. Available in Lite or regular models, the UP Xtreme comes with Intel Whiskey Lake processors, plenty of ports, a 40-pin header and a DDR4 SODIMM slot among other features.

Xiaomi released the 65-inch Mi TV Master Series last month and is set to follow it with yet another premium OLED TV. Not much has been revealed so far but word on the grapevine implies a much larger TV, with an accompanying premium in pricing.

An apparent image of the upcoming Huami Amazfit Neo smartwatch has been leaked, revealing a design language that is not entirely dissimilar to that of the rugged Amazfit Ares smartwatch. No specifications for the Amazfit Neo have been unearthed yet, but it should appeal to those after a sportier-looking smart wearable.

Code relating to second-generation Amazfit smartwatches from Huami has been discovered along with a small detail about a potentially new product. Codenames for the devices were found in code for the Zepp 4.8.9 app and appear to relate to successors of the well-received Huami Amazfit GTS and Huami Amazfit GTR.

The Creative SXFI AIR is a US$140 pair of over-ear headphones that packs plenty of features. With a Super X-Fi DSP, Bluetooth, line-in, USB Type-C and a microSD card reader, you are spoilt for choice with the SXFI AIR. Average battery life and underwhelming drivers hold the SXFI AIR back, though.

Sony has finally released the WH-1000XM4, almost two years after it released its last edition in the WH-1000XM series. Little has changed from the WH-1000XM3 and WH-1000XM4 save for a few new features. Battery life remains at 30 hours with NC on and the new model has the same 40 mm neodymium drivers. Bluetooth 5.0 is now supported, but aptX and aptX HD have been dropped.

The Rock Pi 4 Model C is available to order from another retailer for the princely sum of US$59.00. Previously, AllNetChina had been the only retailer to offer the single-board computer at that price, but Seeedstudio has now got in on the act.

The release of the WH-1000XM4 is almost upon us, at least according to the publication of more retailer listings and even a video review. Sony appears to have made some minor changes from the headphones that it released two years ago, which is not necessarily a bad thing. Call quality apparently remains unchanged, though.

Hands-on images of the PS5 DualSense controller have been published online, purportedly from the FCC. The images show the DualSense from all angles in its two-tone colour scheme and also offer a look at an unannounced black version. Sony has confirmed that the PS5 DualSense controllers will receive dedicated software updates too, a change from how the company currently delivers updates for the DualShock 4.

The Sony WH-1000XM4 is thought to be arriving on August 6, following a protracted development cycle. The headphones will arrive almost two years on from the release of the WH-1000XM3, but early retail listings have confirmed that the WH-1000XM4 will use the same QN1 Noise Cancelling Processor as its predecessor.

The Sony Bravia X7400H smart TV will be released in India on August 6 via Flipkart for INR 63,990 (US$851). It comes with a 55-inch 4K LCD panel that uses Sony's proprietary Triluminos technology. Other features include support for Android TV, in-build Chromecast functionality, 20W speakers, and more.

Xiaomi has announced a special event coming up soon, and a tip from a noted leaker has suggested that the popular Chinese OEM will use the moment as an opportunity to reveal some new smartphones. The Xiaomi Mi Pro+ (Super Cup) is a likely candidate, and the Xiaomi Mi Mix 2020 has also been put forward for a potential reveal.

A promo video for the upcoming Sony WH-1000XM4 wireless noise-cancelling headphones has been leaked online, and it reveals quite a few details about the successor to the well-received WH-1000XM3 headphones. Users will be treated to features such as wear detection, Speak-to-Chat mode, DSEE Extreme, and location-based favorite presets.

Radxa's new version of the Rock Pi 4, the Model C, is finally orderable. The Rock Pi 4 Model C has an M.2 connector for NVMe storage and is available for as little as US$59. The SBC is available with a hexa-core processor and 4 GB of RAM.

The Huami Amazfit Band 6 has been confirmed thanks to a combination of some code digging and the fitness tracker appearing in all its glory on a retailer site. The Amazfit Band 6 comes with Amazon Alexa, blood oxygen monitoring, heart-rate tracker, menstrual cycle tracker, and stress detection. The “York” codename was previously thought to belong to a global version of the Xiaomi Mi Band 5.

The Zephyr Gaming Mouse resembles many other gaming mice with its RGB lighting and over the top design. However, it also includes a built-in fan that Zephyr Gaming claims can cool your hand. We have been using a prototype for over a week now, but is it worth its US$89 early bird price?

Images and specs for the Redmi K30 Ultra have been shared online, with the upcoming device featuring a MediaTek Dimensity 1000+ chip and up to 12 GB RAM. Apparently, Redmi will also be launching its first smartwatch soon, possibly in August, with some speculating that it will simply be a scaled-down version of the Xiaomi Mi Watch.

Sony is finally getting around to releasing the WH-1000XM4, some eight months after the headphones leaked. Reportedly, the WH-1000XM4 will retail for €379.90 in the Eurozone and US$349.00 in the US. It could be upwards of a month before the up-market headphones start shipping, though.

Huawei has officially launched its new TalkBand B6 fitness tracker and Bluetooth headset combination wearable. Three editions of the Huawei TalkBand B6 have been released, with prices starting at 999 yuan (US$143). The versatile gadget comes with a blood oxygen monitor, Kirin A1 chip, Bluetooth 5.2, and heart-rate monitor.

Sony has announced that a number of its premium TVs are "Ready for PlayStation 5", ahead of the console's release later this year. The list includes the XH90, XH92 and ZH8, which will all support 4K and 120 FPS gaming.

Xiaomi's official Twitter handle has put out a teaser, which hints that the Mi TV Stick will be released in India on August 5. It comes with a dedicated remote and will likely come with the Mi TV's Patchwall software. It is expected to cost between INR 2,000 (US$27) and INR 2,500 (US$34).

Sony has finally launched the successor to the a7S II. It comes with a new BIONZ XR image processor, a new CMOS sensor with an effective resolution of 12.1MP and a new thermal management system that may improve 4K 60p 10-bit 4:2:2 record times. Sony has also debuted the new CFexpress Type A storage format.

Eve Devices touts its new Spectrum product as a gaming monitor with a crowd-source, and thus potentially idealized, design. Now, it is looking for more consumer input on the accessories that might be sold alongside this upcoming release. They include USB type C hubs, RGB lighting kits and VESA mounts.

Xiaomi has a new “hot launch” in its product pages with the Mi Charger 33 W accessory. The charger can be used with smartphones like the Xiaomi Mi 10, Redmi K30 Pro, and Redmi 10X Pro, and it can be used with iPads and MacBooks. The Xiaomi Mi Charger 33 W is currently priced at 69 yuan (US$10).

The Huawei TalkBand B6 wearable has become the chief suspect for a teased product launch by the popular Chinese OEM. Although the promo image doesn’t specify what device is being marketed, the curved display certainly points to the TalkBand B6 fitness tracker and Bluetooth headset. A launch date of July 30 is also mentioned.

The price tag has been set for the Sony WH-1000XM4 in Europe, a new leak has revealed. Additionally, a new release date has been suggested as Sony bears down on the possible launch of the Apple AirPods Studio.