Software

The Q3s is projected to join the Realme Q family of smartphones soon, bringing a mid-range 5G processor to this group. Now, the model number associated with this upcoming device has surfaced on Geekbench, possibly confirming that it will launch soon.

Fitbit has added two features to the Luxe, its latest fitness tracker. Arguably, both should have been present at launch, but their inclusion is welcome, nonetheless.

The smartphone OEM Honor has confirmed it has secured Google Mobile Services for its premium mid-range 50-series devices. This is as strong a hint as any that the 2021 handsets are headed for an international launch soon, bringing their 108MP main cameras and 100W charging with them.

Tesla finally took its Full Self-Driving car mode out of the early access program, widening its availability to Tesla car owners with a perfect safety score.

The easy to operate and free software ScummVM celebrates its 20th anniversary with an update and can now run even more retro games on modern systems.

AMD and Microsoft have finally acknowledged poor L3 cache performance in Windows 11, and a fix for the same is on the way in the form of a Windows update later this month. AMD also notes that CPPC2 may not schedule threads properly on preferred cores in Windows 11 and is investigating a fix.

Nokia has made the G300 official as a smartphone with a sizeable display and a generous battery. However, those specs are tempered by a distinctly budget-tier 5G processor and low-res triple cameras. It will be released via the TracFone Wireless and Straight Talk networks in the US later in October 2021.

Xiaomi has brought MIUI 12.5 Enhanced Edition to the Mi 11 Ultra globally. The OS update is available as V12.5.7.0.RKAMIXM, which also includes the September 2021 security patch.

Amazfit has already confirmed that it will launch the GTR 3 and GTS 3 flagship smartwatches during its next product event. Now, the popular fitness-tech brand has also revealed specs for their latest pair of TWS earbuds. The new Powerbuds variants have the brand's latest advanced health-tracking feature hinted at in earlier press conferences.

The LG Wing has been the epitome of LG's shoddy software support. Two and a half months on from its last update and just days from its first anniversary, the Wing is still without an OS update and adrift on a three-month-old security patch.

Amazfit has now confirmed an upgrade for its line of GTS smartwatches as well as their round-faced counterparts. This new third-gen flagship has the same upgraded features as the GTR 3 and 3 Pro, albeit with a different screen type. It has 3 new colorways and may last for more than 10 days between charges.

The GTR 3 and its new Pro version are now the latest round-faced flagship smartwatches from Amazfit. The OEM touts them as the wearables with the largest circular AMOLED displays in the industry. They also boast an expanded panel of sports modes, not to mention the brand's newest health-tracking sensors and panel of workout modes.

Amazfit has announced that the GTR 3 will launch later today (October 11, 2021). The round-faced smartwatch is projected to do so alongside an inaugural Pro variant during this event. Now, the same device has appeared on Amazon's US site. The listing's link reveals its pricing and display size, although the page behind it does not open quite yet.

Verizon's Stream TV is your fairly standard streaming box with Android TV. However, leaks from some official bodies have reportedly revealed that its next generation will have a much more interesting form-factor. It will apparently combine the features of the current device with those of a speaker one might place under the TV in question.

Canon has announced the RF5.2mm f/2.8L, created with the dual fish-eye lenses needed to convert a single DSLR into a VR content-creation machine. This new binocular accessory is compatible with the EOS R5, and confers 180-degree 3-dimensional stereoscopic recording in up to 8K on the flagship camera.

XPG has announced that it is the first OEM to get its DDR5 RAM to reach a speed of over 8,000 megatransfers per second (MT/s). The company claims to have achieved this feat using memory with a default clock of 4,800MT/s. The RAM in question is to be launched later in 2021.

XDO Tech's Pantera Pico PC may be one of the best-known mini-PCs of recent days, thanks to its highly successful Kickstarter campaign. This crowdfunding drive has now closed, having raised "over 4800%" of its original its availability has shifted to InDemand on Indiegogo, starting at ~US$160 on this platform.

Samsung has started to release the October Android update for many Galaxy smartphones and tablets. The update resolves numerous security issues which is why owners of compatible devices are advised to install the update in a timely manner.

The ingenious developers of cryptomining software are making considerable progress in bypassing Nvidia's imperfect hashrate limiter that is built into the latest LHR variants of its GeForce RTX graphics cards.

The Honor 50 is a Snapdragon 778G-powered Android smartphone with a 120Hz AMOLED screen and a 108MP main camera. It is mainly only available in China to date; however, a prolific leaker now asserts that it will launch in Europe by the end of October 2021. Then again, it may do so at a higher price than many of its potential competitors.

The Motorola Moto E40 has been hyped in potentia as its series' very first high-refresh-rate smartphone; now, a new "Coming Soon" page on Flipkart has revealed that this is indeed the case. It seems the retail platform will be one of the first to list the probably super-budget phone later in October 2021.

The heretofore-rumored Moto G Pure has emerged as a reality today (October 7, 2021). The new Android 11 smartphone is touted to deliver "more of what you love", although in truth it seems to offer a profoundly essential Motorola experience. This involves a typically tall display, a large-ish battery with very standard charging and a reasonable starting price.

Halide has updated its popular camera app for the iPhone with a new macro mode. The functionality is similar to one of the marquee camera features on the new iPhone 13 Pro models giving owners of older iPhones an opportunity to snap their own close-ups.

Xiaomi began sending out the Android 12 beta update to Global ROM units for the first time a few days ago. The rollout started with the Mi 11, Mi 11i, and Mi 11 Ultra but it appears, in typical Xiaomi fashion, that said update could have some major issues.

Google has announced that its Play Movies & TV app on Android is to be reborn as Google TV with an upcoming update. This will bring the app's interface in line with that of the Mountain View giant's latest "one-stop shop" smart-screen UI, complete with its new trend-based content carousel and watchlist.

Motorola is currently rumored to have what might be its 2021 flagship for the Moto E series of smartphones in the works. Now, this device has appeared in an e-tail listing online for the first time. The information on this page matches all previous tips concerning the smartphone, its possible unique selling point included.

Besides the Vapour platform, the leaked source files also reveal something called VapeWorld that is built on the Unity engine and looks like a VR chat game with 3D Twitch chat emotes. Additionally, the existence of a “metaverse” folder could suggest Amazon's plans to integrate NFT and other crypto tokens with Vapour.

OnePlus has published its first Open Beta for OxygenOS 12. So far, only the OnePlus 9 and OnePlus 9 Pro are eligible for the OS update, but over a dozen OnePlus smartphones will receive Android 12 eventually. The OnePlus Nord-N series and the OnePlus 6 series will remain on Android 11, though.

OnePlus is currently believed to have a late-2021 flagship refresh called the 9RT nearly ready to go. A model number previously linked to this putative smartphone has just popped up again in a new leak. It has appeared on Geekbench this time, in a listing that suggests its premium specs include the Snapdragon 888 SoC.

Google has announced the October 2021 update for supported Pixel smartphones. The new update is rolling out for the Pixel 3, Pixel 4 and Pixel 5 series, including 'a' models.

Xiaomi has started rolling out Android 12 to the Mi 11, Mi 11i and the Mi 11 Ultra. Currently, Google's new OS is available for Mi Pilot testers on MIUI's global branch. Xiaomi considers the updates Stable Beta builds.

Android 12 has arrived, but not for Pixel smartphones. Instead, Google has only pushed its new OS to AOSP. Android 12 will arrive on existing Pixel devices later this month, potentially around the time that Google launches the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro.

Xiaomi is now rolling out the very first MIUI 12.5 Enhanced update to owners of the European model of its flagship phone, the Mi 11 Ultra. This is a Mi Pilot release, however, and is not currently available to the public, although a wide rollout should follow over the coming weeks.

Insiders have noticed a few show-stopping bugs with Windows 11, which is now officially available for all eligible PCs. Users have noticed that virtualization-based security, which will be enabled by default in all OEM PCs, can have a drastic impact on frame rates in games. Also being observed is a File Explorer memory leak bug in which closing the Explorer windows does not release back the allocated memory.

Facebook users are complaining of outages in their thousands. The social media giant reportedly developed these problems today (October 4, 2021), causing a loss of service on its main site, not to mention other popular apps such as Instagram and WhatsApp. A representative has acknowledged the apparently global issue.

OnePlus is projected to launch second-gen versions of its more affordable Buds Z TWS earbuds soon. A new leak for these accessories hint at a considerable boost in total battery life, slated to reach up to 18 more hours between charges. However, this only applies when the Buds Z2s' new noise-cancelling feature is turned off.

A tech blog claims to have uncovered evidence of a new portable gaming device developed by Lenovo. This putative answer to the Nintendo Switch or Sony PSP goes under the Legion brand and runs Android - or, rather, it would have, had the OEM not chosen to cancel it ahead of its launch. Should it have made it to the market in 2021, it may have worked as a cloud and streaming machine too.

Microsoft is preparing Microsoft 365 and Office 2021 for release on October 5 on Windows and macOS devices for business, personal and student customers. Office 2021 will inherit many of the existing components from Microsoft 365 subscription (formerly Office 365) and both will be updated with new features in time for Windows 11.

Qualcomm's Snapdragon 778G and MediaTek's Dimensity 1200 are the two current chipsets of choice across the mid-range and sub-premium segments. Some may wonder exactly what performance differences exist between the two chipsets; answers are, thankfully, here.

Mobile app and game downloads combined declined slightly year-on-year in the third quarter of 2021 (3Q2021), as the pandemic-era boom in this area recedes. Nevertheless, the amount of money coming in on both the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store is still going up. The latest research indicates that TikTok is still #1 in terms of revenue.

The company SmallRig has launched something that might be for those in need of something besides the typical tripod or gimbal for their mobile photography or videography. The Fold P10 is a collapsible smartphone clamp designed to support two-handed use during filming. It also has cold-shoe mounts for a larger-scale set-up with external lights or mics.

Asus' ZenFone 8 is one of 2021's very few true compact Android flagships. It normally runs on ZenUI based on Android 11; however, the OEM has now officially announced it is working on a major upgrade for this software. Users who would like to get a sneak peek at this new interface are invited to enrol in its new beta program.

Xiaomi has now listed its new phones like the Xiaomi Pad 5, Xiaomi 11T series, and Redmi 10 in its list of devices eligible for beta recruitment. The company has also started the Global stable ROM Android 12 beta-testing, kicking things off with phones in the Mi 11 series.

Xiaomi is now gracing its premium phones, the Mi 10, Mi 10T, and Mi 10T Pro with their first tastes of MIUI 12.5 Enhanced Edition in Europe. The updates for the three phones deliver the September security patch, as well as all of MIUI 12.5 Enhanced's features.

The iPhone maker has just released a small update for its mobile operating system iOS. Especially users of an iPhone 13 and an Apple Watch should install the update to fix an annoying bug with the unlocking feature.

Realme is now thought to have a new addition to its affordable-5G Q series of smartphones ready to go. Now, the latest tips purport to have a product name for this variant, as well as further display and charging specs. Should they prove accurate, they may indicate the price-point at which this late-2021 phone may launch.

2020's iPhone 12 had been found to be very independent repair-unfriendly by a prominent Australia-based vlogger. Now, a follow-up video asserts that this situation has gotten even worse in 2021. Replacing some components apparently causes more iPhone functions to break, some of the 13 series' newest features included.

The Redmi Note 8, Redmi K20, and their Pro variants will join a list of nine Xiaomi smartphones that will become end-of-life (EOL) products in late November. While bug fixes and stable release updates may still be available for these phones, there will be no more beta development pursued for these popular but aging devices.

Motorola's latest announcement is a rare one, as it is for a tablet rather than a phone. The new Moto Tab G20 is an 8-inch slate with an HD+ resolution and a budget-grade MediaTek processor. Nevertheless, its specs do not match those of another rumored tablet from the same brand.

Nokia is linked to the launch of a number of new mobile devices soon. Now, a new leak suggests that one of them will be powered by a low-end Snapdragon processor, the specs of which also indicates this potentially upcoming handset will also be 5G. Therefore, it is now being painted as a more affordable version of another rumored smartphone.