Accessory

GoPro has announced its first full-year financial report since it switched to an online retail and subscription-based business model. The customers in question are now just over 760,000 in number, beating the company's most ambitious goal for the year. This may suggest that the action-cam's brand new strategy works, although that is not the full story of GoPro's 2020.

Nubia is the latest smartphone OEM to slap its name on a power brick with fancy specs: gallium nitride-based charging with a 65 watt (W) rate and multiple ports in this case. However, it seems Samsung is hot on its heels by certifying a 65W accessory of its own. Could it be meant for the Galaxy Z Fold3?

Optoma claims that its new DuraCore ProScene laser projector is rated to throw images with a brightness of 7,000 lumens. It is also short-throw, which means it can has use-cases up to and including whole-room, 24/7 immersive effects. The ZU720TST also weighs only 28 pounds, which could allow one person to mount it, even to a ceiling.

Razer has launched one of the first docks to support Intel’s new Thunderbolt 4 high-speed data transfer standard. As you might expect from the gaming-focused company, the new dock also includes support for its Chroma lighting effects system in addition to its wide array of connectivity options.

Eve Devices originally pitched the Spectrum as the ideal display for enthusiasts - then pushed its delivery date back until well into 2021. However, it is still posting updates to its community website as a sign it is working on getting the product to the shipping stage. The latest one claims it is crossing things off a long list of desired features, which include VRR and an inbuilt frame-rate counter.

Xiaomi launched a 65-watt (W) power brick in late 2020. Now, it has submitted a newer one rated for slightly faster 67W charging to the TUV safety-testing authority. This has led to speculation that it is intended to accompany the global version of the new Mi 11 flagship phone on its February 8, 2021 launch.

The list of products that IKEA designed in collaboration with Republic of Gamers, the well-known Asus sub-brand, includes over 30 products, including gaming desks and chairs, a drawer unit, as well as various small accessories such a mug holder, a mouse bungee, a ring light, and so on. Global sales will start later this year.

Apple is currently rumored to be involved in the design of its own-brand electric cars to rival other brands such as Tesla. This might now be bolstered with reports that the Cupertino giant has invested ~US$3.6 billion in Kia, a subsidiary of Hyundai known to be involved in the production of those kinds of automobiles.

Samsung marketed the latest generation of their Galaxy Buds with a number of new modes, an Ambient Sound mode being most prominent among them. It is a form of ANC with environmental awareness mixed in. The TWS earbuds' latest updates should improve the hand-off between these two modes.

Apple is said to have added support for both the Sony PS5 DualSense controller and the Xbox Series X/S controller to the first iOS 14.5 beta. The relatively quick addition of support for the next-gen console controllers continues to point to Apple’s gaming ambitions.

MediaTek has posted an arguable win by securing a contract with Apple to supply it with components for next-gen audio accessories. Then again, these products are not future AirPods, but those of the Beats series instead. This would be the first incidence of this product line not being made with completely in-house hardware.

The Wi-Fi Alliance has only just begun to validate hardware with the newest 6E wireless-data standard. This is good news for MediaTek, which has had its latest access point and client-side wireless solutions picked up for use in this official body's new test bed. Therefore, the company might now find it easier to pitch these components to OEMs who make routers, broadband equipment or PCs.

Xiaomi has just gone public with its working prototype of groundbreaking over-the-air (or remote) wireless charging. However, it seems Motorola is hot on its heels with its own take on this "Mi Air Charge". A YouTube demonstration appears to show it working with 2 modified smartphones placed at 0.8 and 1 meter away from a single transmitter.

Realme is mostly known for its phones and audio devices; however, like Xiaomi and Huawei before it, it is now rumored to get into the laptop game as well. According to a well-known leaker, the first of these new products will debut in June 2021. Meanwhile, the OEM has teased a new initiative called TechLife, which will launch in February.

With a tempting price tag of less than US$70, the new mechanical keyboard from Sharkoon comes with two switch choices - red or blue. The SKILLER SGK30 sports a classic design and its list of features includes n-key rollover, support for saving up to 20 game profiles via the companion software, 15 lighting presets, and more.

Lenovo's US webstore has begun what it calls a "You Pay What We Pay" event, which apparently entails the same kinds of discounts only normally available to the OEM's staff members. They include up to US$800 off an Intel 10th-gen Legion 7i laptop, as well as deals on gaming mice and headsets.

Shortly after its release, the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra has landed in Jerry's hands for the usual torture session. Thankfully for the OEM and its fans, the new handset lives up to the expectations overall, although its durability alone does not justify the quite painful price of US$1,200.

With the Inkplate 10, one can use an ESP32 e-Paper display without connecting it to a machine like the Raspberry Pi. The Inkplate 10 also has a peripheral mode for use with devices such as the Raspberry Pi, but its Wi-Fi connectivity makes it more versatile than many e-Paper displays. The Inkplate 10 also promises up to 37% faster refresh rates than typical e-Paper displays, among other improvements.

Apple has updated some product safety material found in the Support section of its website to clarify the potential of its new MagSafe feature to interfere with pacemakers. It notes that, while the extra magnetism involved should not make the technology more dangerous than the average wireless-charging device or accessory, a user with a medical device should keep it a certain distance away from the relevant devices.

Scheduled to hit Europe this March with a price tag of over US$8,850, the Sony Alpha 1 features a new 50.1 MP full-frame stacked Exmor RS CMOS sensor, an upgraded BIONZ XZ imaging processing engine, world's first anti-flicker shooting with both mechanical and electronic shutter, 8K video recording, and much more.

Wireless smart tags for possession-tracking seem to be one of the major trends for mobile device OEMs in 2021. According to a new patent application discovered on the CNIPA database, OPPO may be the next to jump onto this bandwagon. Its new Bluetooth tag looks much like that of Samsung's, although there are no indications as yet that the two would work in the exact same way.

The Samsung Health Monitor app has finally acquired the CE mark of approval in Europe. This means that the Galaxy Watch3 can finally use its electrocardiogram (ECG) and blood-pressure monitoring features, as can the Galaxy Watch Active2, across the European Economic Area (EEA). This is also true of the UK, UAE, Chilean and Indonesian markets.

A first leak of Xiaomi Mi Band 6-related specifications has offered up a goldmine of information about the upcoming budget fitness tracker – apart from its release date and probable price. However, Xiaomi’s habits with previous Mi Band launches and the state of the wearables market offer up some useful clues for predictions.

A report out of South Korea has claimed that both Apple and Samsung are preparing to include a blood glucose monitor in their upcoming 2021 smartwatch releases. This means that an Apple Watch 7, Samsung Galaxy Watch 4, or Galaxy Watch Active 3 could end up being fitted with a vital, and non-invasive, sensor for checking glucose levels.

The Redmi Watch - or Mi Watch Lite for global markets - has been spotted on the BIS regulatory documentation, hinting that it will launch in India soon. It is slated to be the Redmi-branded version as it has been registered under that name. By any name, it has a 1.4-inch square face, 5ATM water resistance and up to 9 hours of battery life.

The first details of the Xiaomi Mi Band 6 have been posted online, and it seems likely there will be a global variant called the Mi Smart Band 6. The upcoming activity tracker has all the features that the Mi Band 5 offers but with additional utilities, such as SpO2 tracking (blood oxygen level measurement) and Alexa support. The Mi Band 6 may have a larger display too.

The Realme Buds Q are TWS earbuds that launched for about US$30 in 2020. Now, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has inadvertently confirmed that their second generation is likely to launch soon. They have been registered as Bluetooth devices with black and fluorescent green colorways.

The OnePlus Watch is coming to India, according to a new regulatory certification posted by a well-known tipster. It has been presumed that this wearable would have a round face; however, the new registration specifies 2 variants with different model numbers. Therefore, a square-faced option from OnePlus might be back on the cards.

Realme's first-ever smartwatch was an Apple Watch clone, whereas its second had a round face and a Pro variant. A new FCC registration reveals the OEM has gone back to a square face for its next wearable. It has an on-trend blood oxygen monitor, as well as "dynamic" heart-rate tracking and IP68 ingress-protection.

At just 85 g, the Naga X is 30 percent lighter than the 120 g Naga Trinity while also costing less at retail. New optical sensors and PTFE feet make it a leaner and smoother alternative to the Trinity.

The Raspberry Pi Pico is a tiny microcontroller board powered by the Raspberry Pi Foundation's custom RP2040 microcontroller chip. The board is similar to an Arduino in that it is designed for simple and specific electronics projects or as a complimentary board to the Raspberry Pi.

Get brand name features without overpaying for the name. The EasySMX may not have everything, but its core experience is solid and reliable.

Apple's TV+ is its answer to other streaming platforms such as Netflix. One year's worth of free access to the service was bundled with compatible hardware bought at its September 2019 launch. That offer was then extended so as to end in February 2021 - however, the OEM has now prolonged it again until July.

The OPPO Band is a 2020 fitness tracker with a blood-oxygen sensor that launched in China for about US$31. Now, it has reportedly acquired an EEC certification, which suggests that it may go on sale in Russia soon. Therefore, this could this be the first of further global releases for the device.

The Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 has a new firmware update that brings part of the OEM's virtual group-workout initiative to the wearable. It also now supports SmartThings Find, which might help an owner recover a missing unit, as well as Samsung's hand-washing app.

Can smartwatches help to diagnose cases of Covid-19? According to a couple of new studies, they can. The research applies to the Apple Watch and other wearables associated with heart-rate monitoring, as they might record the variations in this metric that might indicate the presence of the virus, even in asymptomatic patients.

Realme is a brand that has built its appeal on affordable mobile and personal audio devices. Initial leaks suggest it is going to keep this going in 2021 with the launch of the C21 smartphone and the Buds Wireless 2 Neo. They are slated to be the successor to the cost-effective C11 and to be neckbuds rather than TWS earbuds respectively.

The Galaxy SmartTag is a new consumer-grade electronic tracker from Samsung. It has a versatile array of use-cases, from potentially protecting bags from theft to finding lost pets. It is rated for up to 6 months of use per charge, and for ultra-wide-band (UWB) technology, which helps with its AR Tracking feature.

Samsung has added Pro variants to its Galaxy Buds series of TWS earbuds. They are rated for upgraded active noise cancellation (ANC), voice-call quality and 360° Audio. They can also switch automatically between different mobile devices from their OEM depending on what the user is doing with either one.

The latest addition to the Sound Blaster Z lineup comes with updated features, new gaming profiles, microphone and headphone EQ presets. The Sound Blaster Z SE has the same audio specs as the regular edition, such as up to 116 dB SnR and 24-bit/192 kHz sound. However, now there is virtual 7.1 support for headphones and 5.1 discrete audio on speakers.

Asus and MSI have released details about their new Z590 motherboards with the LGA 1200 socket that offer support for Comet Lake and Rocket Lake chips from Intel. MSI’s range features 12 boards that are headlined by a revamped MEG Z590 GODLIKE while the 13 boards from Asus are led by the pricey ROG Maximus XIII Extreme Glacial.

Asus has debuted its new Instant Guard facility in the new RT-AX68U Wi-Fi 6 home router. The device also sprouts 3x3 MIMO antennae for speeds of up to 2.7 gigabits per second (Gb/s). It also supports the OEM's AiMesh software, so as to integrate into and proliferate any such network it finds itself in.

Asus announced two new ProArt displays, one of which is a portable 14-inch touchscreen monitor. This little display also has hotkeys and a physical dial for use with Adobe software. Asus also released a 15.6-inch portable monitor for business users.

With a design that had already managed to receive multiple awards, the Asus ZenBeam Latte projector is the first of its kind to offer a fabric exterior that enhances the audio experience and provides a familiar look. It also sports up to three hours of autonomy on a single charge and features a 10 W Harman Kardon speaker.

Amazfit has teased another member of the growing GTR 2 and GTS 2 family in the form of the upcoming Amazfit GTR 2 LTE. This latest addition will bring the total of smartwatches in this range to six SKUs. Fortunately, Amazfit has published a handy graphic to help shoppers choose from the diverse range of “fitness for all” smartwatches.

TCL's new product launches are mainly display-centric; however, it has also announced the expansion of its smart device ecosystem at CES 2021. They include the new Wearable Display, a name the OEM has seen fit to give its first pair of smart glasses. They are joined here by other devices such as the hybrid ANC-enhanced MOVEAUDIO S600 earbuds, the MOVETRACK PetTracker and the LINKHUB 4G/LTE Outdoor CPE.

TCL's latest generation of mini-LED panel is called OD Zero, ostensibly as the OEM claims to have reduced the distance between the backlight and diffuser layers in these panels to "zero millimeters". This could improve on luminance and color-depth for the devices based on it, not to mention their form-factor. TCL has also announced that its 2021 smart TVs will launch with Google's new UI.

The Lenovo Legion Gaming Dock S600 has been launched at CES 2021. It comes with two USB ports and a wireless charging pad that can charge Qi-enabled devices at up to 20W. The gaming dock will be available for purchase in April 2020 and cost US$89.99.