Software

The first stable MIUI 12 update has landed on the Mi Note 10 and Mi Note 10 Pro in Europe. The update, which is rolling out now as an OTA, upgrades the two devices from V11.1.2.0.QFDEUXM. The whereabouts of MIUI 12 for more editions of the Redmi Note 7 and Redmi Note 7S has been offered too.

The Mi A1 is currently receiving a new update. This update brings the August security patch to the Xiaomi Android One phone but is likely also the last update the phone will ever get, as this is the 36th monthly patch it has gotten, making for three years of support.

The Xiaomi Mi A3 has received a new update. The update apparently upgrades the device to the August 2020 security patches, among other changes like stability improvements and performance optimisations. The update is rolling out now as an OTA.

A new MIUI 12 update has reached the Xiaomi Redmi Note 8 Pro. The update should be an encouraging sign for the handsets that remain on MIUI 11, like those on the European and Russian branches of MIUI.

Resurrection Remix has announced a new stable version of its custom ROM that is based on Android 10. Resurrection Remix 8.5.7 is now available to download for Xiaomi and Redmi devices, such as the Xiaomi Mi A2, Mi 9T, Redmi Note 7 Pro, Redmi Note 8, and Pocophone F1. The custom ROM can also be used with smartphones from other OEMs.

A recent leak has pointed to an upcoming Samsung foldable that may be more affordable than its predecessors. This rumor now gains more weight due to the fact that the Wi-Fi Alliance has registered a device with its alleged model number. This new leak may also point to specs that may indeed render it the foldable for (more of) the masses.

The Galaxy Note 9 and Galaxy S9 series are over two years old at this point and getting to the end of their major support lifespans. All three phones are set for one last hurrah, however, in the form of the One UI 2.5 update.

Nokia launched the C3 as a 5.99-inch HD+ display phone with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage in China recently. It also runs Android 10 with an octa-core processor, and costs about US$101. A new leak suggests this budget phone is also headed to India soon.

The new wearables brand Zepp has launched its first smartwatch, the E. This device has a choice of square or round 3D curved bezel-free glass faces with AMOLED displays and stainless steel backing. Both versions also feature 11 sports modes, advanced sleep tracking and a blood-oxygen sensor.

The Galaxy M51 is currently thought to become the first Samsung phone that breaks the 6000mAh barrier on its launch. It may have appeared on Geekbench 5 ahead of this event, in which case its SoC and RAM may have been spilled. According to this new leak, it gets a 4G/LTE-only mid-range Snapdragon chipset.

Several Galaxy S20, Galaxy S20+, and Galaxy S20 Ultra users based in Europe have confirmed that they are receiving the One UI 2.5 update. It brings forth a host of Galaxy Note 20 features like wireless DeX and support for Android 10's navigation gestures.

The Huawei Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro are receiving new updates. This month's download brings the two former flagships onto the August set of security patches and addresses multiple CVEs. Similarly, Huawei has extended the rollout of the July 2020 security patches to the European editions of the P20 and P20 Pro.

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 is a graphically punishing game; initial benchmarks from several reviews show that the game struggles to hit 60 FPS at 1080p and 1440p, even when running on high-end hardware like the Intel Core i9-9900K and the Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Ti.

Adobe representatives have acknowledged a critical fault in a recent update to its version of Lightroom for iOS. It follows multiple complaints from users that they have lost their photos, presets or both in the event these were not backed up beforehand. The company has released a subsequent update that avoids these issues; however, it will not be able to restore the data for affected customers.

An expected set of features for the upcoming EMUI 11 has been posted online. The features include an improved GPU Turbo, a refreshed dark mode, better file sharing and overhauled gestures among other changes and innovations.

The first teaser trailer for Call of Duty Black Ops: Cold War hit YouTube. The trailer features footage from a real-world interview of Soviet defector and ex-KGB informant Yuri Bezmenov and urges players to know their history lest they be doomed to repeat it.

Redmi Note 8 owners aren't too happy about the fact their phones are yet to receive the Android 10 or MIUI 12 updates. A tentative timeline pegged the Android 10 update as due to arrive in early August but that doesn't look to be feasible now either.

The wearables OEM Mobvoi is slated to launch a watch with cutting-edge Qualcomm Snapdragon silicon for that form-factor soon. However, its latest release definitely doesn't fit this bill. Nevertheless, the TicWatch GTX packs sleep-tracking, heart-rate monitoring and 14 workout modes into a device with a normal price of US$60.

An industry insider speculates that Huawei will release a HarmonyOS-powered smartphone in late 2020. It will reportedly be a low-cost 5G-ready smartphone exclusive to the Chinese market. Huawei is expected to tell us more about its plans with HarmonyOS at its developer conference this September.

NVIDIA's cloud-gaming platform GeForce NOW announces seven additional titles today (August 20, 2020), one of which is also Steam's latest release. It is based on the popular TV show Peaky Blinders, and has been up for pre-order until now. Therefore, customers can stream their new title as well as load it on their own PC.

Purported details of the PS5 UI have been leaked by a seemingly disgruntled game developer who claimed to have been working on the latest Call of Duty title. In the meantime, a fan has utilized the official PlayStation 5 boot screen to come up with a fresh-looking UI concept for the next-gen console.

Nubia launched its second-generation flexible display watch in China at the start of August 2020, and it has been exclusive to that market since. Now, however, the OEM has broadened its availability by making it a reward on a Kickstarter campaign. It has attracted nearly 7 times its original goal at this point.

Augmented reality (AR) may emerge as a prominent medium for content and entertainment in the future. At least, Samsung appears to think so, as it has reportedly claimed a new form of the glasses that facilitate it at the South Korean intellectual property office. Should this be the case, the resulting product may look more like sports AR goggles than anything.

Huawei is issuing new updates to the Mate 10, Mate 10 Pro, P20 and P20 Pro. The round of updates brings the older flagships onto the July set of security patches and fixes multiple CVEs.

New stable MIUI 12 updates have been made available for the Redmi K20 Pro and Mi 9T Pro. The updates are rolling out to global and European handsets now as OTA packages.

The prolific leaker Roland Quandt now claims to have laid hands on product images for Fitbit's next wave of smartwatches and fitness trackers. They include possible new generations of the familiar Versa and Inspire lines. However, there is also a completely new name that may encompass various recent health-wearable trends.

The Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite has received a new update. The update brings the August security patch to the device and is arriving as an OTA. Xiaomi is rolling out the update to global handsets, albeit on a partial release for the time being.

GeForce NOW is NVIDIA's cloud gaming solution that allows access to any titles a user may have acquired regardless of the power of their PC. These possibilities are now officially open to those with Chromebooks, thanks to a new beta. It may allow the app to launch even on these often ultra-light machines.

Xiaomi has rolled back the MIUI 12 upgrade for the Redmi 9, which the company began issuing late last month. In its place comes a fresh version of MIUI 11. The new update is rolling out to handsets now.

The Samsung Galaxy M31s is a mid-ranger that has thrived in its main market (India) due to its extra-large 6000mAh battery. Now, it seems this same screen-time champion is headed to Italy. The OEM's division in this country seems to have given it a support page, despite the fact it is not yet sold there.

The Mi 8 Explorer Edition, Mi 9 Lite and Mi 9 SE have all grabbed the MIUI 12 update. The update is rolling out to the Global, European and Russian versions of the Mi 9 SE.

Huawei has updated its EMUI 10.1 upgrade plans for Africa, the Middle East, Western Europe and North-East Europe. The OS upgrade has now commenced for almost all handsets, albeit only those that Huawei has deemed capable of running EMUI 10.1 anyway.

The iQOO 5 series is a new line from this Vivo sub-brand that has been hyped with its novel spec of 120 watt charging. Now, on their launch, it is revealed that the Pro variant is the one with this new ability. However, the iQOO 5 still offers its Snapdragon 865 SoC, 120 hertz refresh rate and 12GB RAM top-end SKU.

The ability to complete point-of-sale transactions using wearables alone represented a market worth US$285.47 billion in 2019, according to new market research. However, this value is also now thought to grow until it reaches $1.37 trillion by 2027. This trend may be influenced by an increasing demand for novel ways to pay that are contactless as well as cashless.

Google applied for a temporary general license (TGL) in order to keep older Huawei devices compatible with its Android app ecosystem even after this OEM was placed on the US administration's Entity List in May 2019. However, this TGL has now expired, leaving the future function of many phones worldwide in some doubt.

The Redmi Note 7 finally received the stable Android 10 update for the European models a few days ago. The update bears the build number "V11.0.1.0 QFGEUXM" and weighs 2.0 GB. Sadly, it also appears to come with a few bugs.

LG USA has announced that every customer who buys an eligible OLED TV from its 2020 line-up will also get a pair of TONE Frees as a promotional gift. They are this OEM's latest TWS earbuds that are tuned by Meridian and are rated for up to 18 hours of battery life. This offer is valid until the end of August 2020.

The popular messaging app Telegram marks its seventh year of business today (August 14, 2020). It has ushered this anniversary in along with a new feature: video calling. It now exists in alpha form, boasting picture-in-picture and end-to-end encryption, but only for its Android app thus far.

Geekbench 5 now lists a set of results for a "HMD Global Nokia 8 V 5G UW". The last part of this elongated name suggests that it can use Verizon's ultra-wideband (or UW) form of the latest mobile-data standard, and may thus be locked to or at least sold through the carrier at launch. Therefore, this device, should it be real, may be a rebranded 8.3.

Xiaomi has started upgrading three more devices to MIUI 12. The Mi 8 Pro, Mi 8 Lite and Mi Max 3 join the dozens of smartphones that have already received Xiaomi's latest OS.

The EOS R5 is a recently-released, near-US$4000 Canon full-frame mirrorless camera that can shoot 8K RAW - but for only about 20 minutes straight. This, according to the OEM, is due to the need to protect its processor from overheating. However, a teardown documented on Baidu has found that this same silicon may have been underserved in the way of thermal protection.

Samsung recently announced that it would improve its long-term software support to three years for its flagship phones starting with the Galaxy S10 series. New information indicates such support may trickle down to the Galaxy A-series, however, with the Galaxy A71, A51, and A90 being the most likely to enjoy that perk.

Today (August 13, 2020), Mobvoi launched its latest Earbud Gesture product on the crowdfunding platform Indiegogo. The OEM was able to score its goal twice over within the first hour of this project going live. The TWS devices in question are rated for up to 50 hours of battery life with their case.

Android 10 has reached the Xiaomi Redmi 8 in Europe after similar rollouts for the global edition of the device. The Redmi Note 7 has received the same upgrade in Russia too, while MIUI 12 has been re-released for the Redmi Note 9 globally.

The Poco F2 Pro received the stable MIUI 12 update a few weeks ago, and it appears the update broke an important feature. Owners of the Poco F2 Pro running the build "MIUI 12.0.1.0" have complained about the lack of Widevine DRM L1 support, with their phone now unable to stream HD content from platforms like Netflix.

Huawei has updated its EMUI 10.1 upgrade plans in seven regions. The Android 10-based OS should now have now reached almost-all eligible devices in Central Asia, Canada, Europe, Latin America, Japan and Russia.

Xiaomi has unveiled MIUI 12 for India. Announced in a livestream, the company has confirmed that it will start by upgrading 7 devices to its latest OS in the country. It seems to have forgotten that it began rolling out MIUI 12 to handsets in India months ago, though.

Xiaomi has expanded the release of its latest OS for the Poco F2 Pro and Redmi Note 9. MIUI 12 has now reached the Redmi Note 9 in India and is available for more POCO F2 Pro handsets in Indonesia. The two devices have already received MIUI 12 in other regions, too.

Xiaomi has made the MIUI 12 Global stable ROM for the Redmi Note 8 Pro available as part of a wider rollout. The software update for the Global variant of the Redmi Note 8 Pro had already been partially rolled out but now everyone with this particular model should soon find an update notification awaiting them.