iOS

With Google Stadia available on iPhones and iPads via a web app, people have been seeing how well Cyberpunk 2077 runs. It turns out the likes of the iPhone 12 Pro do a better job of playing CD Projekt Red's latest triple-A title than the last-generation PlayStation 4 or Xbox One do.

Google's game streaming platform Stadia is now available on iOS. It is not on the App Store, however, having taken NVIDIA GeForce NOW's route as a web app onto iPhones. Therefore, users with these devices can now log into the sevice on its latest compatible hardware, should they want to.

Apple has now issued iOS and iPadOS updates to version 14.3. It contains some previously-promised features, which include ProRAW support in the Pro iPhone 12 variants, not to mention Apple Fitness+. It also reportedly fixes some issues, including one in which a user's new messages failed to appear in their Notifications.

Jay Freeman, the developer of the Cydia app store, has filed suit against Apple for monopolistic practices that have shut alternative app distribution methods out of iOS. If Freeman wins this suit, it could force Apple to allow and support alternative app installation methods for iOS.

In addition to the shortened battery life, the bug that seems to be affecting various handsets on iOS 14.2 also leads to longer charge times than usual. According to some users, their handsets (older ones in most cases, but also iPhone 12 models) lose over 50 percent in under 30 minutes. The 2018 iPad Pro also seems to be affected.

Apple is running a gift card giveaway Black Friday through Cyber Monday. Qualifying purchases will see the buyer rewarded with a card worth from US$25/£20/€25 up to US$150/£120/€150. The deal includes many major Apple products such as the iPhone 11 and iPhone SE, the iPad Pro, Beats headphones, and even the premium MacBook Pro 16.

The ARM-based Apple M1 chip has made a star turn appearance on the AnTuTu benchmark as the key component in a MacBook Air. The M1 managed to rack up way over one million points, leaving the Apple silicon, including the A12Z Bionic in the iPad Pro 4 and the performance-friendly A14 in the iPad Air (2020), trailing far behind.

Bypassing Apple's onerous restrictions on game streaming apps on the iOS App Store, including individual game certification and approval, NVIDIA recently launched a beta version of its GeForce Now service as a web app for the Safari browser.

The PlayStation 4 smash-hit adventure game The Last of Us Part II has amassed 10 nominations for The Game Awards 2020, including in the Game of the Year category. Indie hit Hades managed to grab eight nominations, while the critically acclaimed Ghost of Tsushima received seven nominations. Winners will be announced on December 10.

Vivo held its Developer Conference today (November 18, 2020). This event was dominated by the introduction of OriginOS, a new UI the OEM has developed in order to replace Funtouch OS on its smartphones. With its adaptive, dynamic widgets, "behavioral" wallpapers and Multi-Turbo 5.0 engine, it may be a vast improvement over its predecessor.

Apple, Samsung, and Xiaomi have taken up all 10 places in the Q3 2020 table for most shipped smartphones of the quarter. While Samsung has five different Galaxy A-branded devices in the charts and Xiaomi has great results with the Redmi Note 9 and Redmi 9, it’s the Apple iPhone 11 that rules the roost once again.

An app that allows iOS users to run a Unix shell on their iDevice was under threat of removal from the App Store. However, Apple apparently reversed its decision, allowing the app to stay up. This could open the door for more scripting and shell apps to hit the App Store in the future.

Square Enix has published its earnings report for the last 6 months (ending on September 30, 2020). It claims to have made 172.7 billion yen (~US$1.7 billion), or 46% more in sales year-on-year (YoY), for this period. This was attributed to strong performance in areas of its business such as its games (mobile titles including) and merchandising arms.

WhatsApp is gradually rolling out two new features to iOS and Android users. Disappearing messages brings added privacy to WhatsApp chats by deleting messages automatically within seven days. There's also a new storage management feature that enables deletion of repetitive media in multiple forwarded chats. Future versions of the app may offer a Vacation Mode that does not de-archive chats when new messages arrive.

LG now has a few generations of its TONE FREE AirPod-clones under its belt. Now, it has announced a new one. These buds look much like the old, except that they support active noise-cancelling (ANC) this time. Their series' UVnano self-disinfecting technology is also still here.

Huami has launched the Amazfit Pop smartwatch in China for a surprisingly low price: 349 yuan (US$52). The bright and breezy wearable features non-medical grade monitors for blood oxygen saturation, atrial fibrillation, sleep quality, and 24-hour heart-rate monitoring. The Amazfit Pop comes in a choice of three colors and is water resistant.

We now have one potential explanation for why the new iPhone 12 models drain battery more quickly than they otherwise might. Although Apple is using a Qualcomm Snapdragon 5G modem, it is the older X55 component from last year, rather than the newer X60 modem released earlier this year.

The C3X is an external home-security camera of the type that integrates AI so as to distinguish potentially dangerous moving objects such as people and cars in the vicinity from others such as animals. Its maker EZVIZ also claims it has extreme low-light capabilities and color night vision. It is now on sale in the UK for a price of about US$194.

A social media post by Lu Weibing has led to some speculation that Xiaomi or Redmi could be planning a diminutive variant of a future flagship along the lines of the iPhone 12 Mini. A Xiaomi Mi 11 SE or Redmi K40 Mini would certainly go down well with users looking for a more compact smartphone.

OPPO has launched the latest addition to its Enco series of TWS earbuds. They are equipped with a dual-core chipset to control their active noise cancelling (ANC) features. The OEM also describes them as having been developed in partnership with the Danish sound specialist Dynaudio. These new Enco buds are Bluetooth 5.2 and have USB type C charging.

iTouch is a wearables brand with a main presence in the United States. It has announced its second-gen Sport smartwatch, which has a new kind of sensor: one that tracks body temperature and alerts the user if it becomes elevated. It has been priced at US$95.99, but is also currently on sale for Black Friday 2020.

Tipster @jon_prosser claimed that Apple's alleged decision to skip on a 120 Hz iPhone 12 display was "100 percent" because of battery life concerns, with the 5G radio taking priority. This might mean that 120 Hz displays will only make their way to iPhone in 2022.

Apple’s upcoming release event, dubbed “Hi, Speed”, will feature its highly anticipated iPhone 12 series. Within the series are four rumoured devices, the 5.4-inch iPhone 12 Mini, 6.1-inch iPhone 12, 6.1-inch iPhone 12 Pro, and 6.7-inch iPhone 12 Pro Max. Kuo’s selection for the most popular model bucks the trend of previous releases.

French premium audio brand Devialet has revealed its first set of true wireless (TWS) earphones. The Devialet brings several unique features to its Gemini earphones that it hopes will catch the eye of audiophiles who demand more from their listening experience.

Casio has announced the ECB20 additions to the Bluetooth-enhanced EDIFICE range. There are 3 new variants of a style that comes with this manufacturer's Smartphone Link to show information streamed to it from a paired smartphone. It also supports up-to-date Casio abilities, including 5-alarm storage, a stopwatch, a timer and a super illuminator dial.

Ultimate Ears has launched the UE Fits, a set of true wireless earbuds that promise the “perfect fit.” The new buds use a polymer that it calls Lightform to mold to the unique shape of a user’s ears in under 60 seconds.

Rumored details about the Apple iPhone 13 range and the third-generation Apple iPhone SE have been shared by display industry analyst Ross Young. It seems there will be four SKUs in the iPhone 13 series, with two of them capable of mmWave 5G connectivity. The iPhone SE 3 will apparently not be part of Apple’s 2021 lineup though.

Epic Games has been in open litigious conflict with Apple over the latter's 30% levy on developer revenue in exchange for the use of its App Store. Now, the studio has escalated this situation with the implementation of the Coalition for App Fairness (CAF), a new non-profit for "developer rights". Spotify, another company openly disgruntled with Apple's "unfair" practices, has also helped form the group.

Bose is trying its hand at marrying its audio expertise with improving sleep with the just-launched Sleepbuds II. The new model addresses the battery life concerns with the original model and also comes with the promise of improved sleep.

D-Link has announced the DCS-8302LH Full HD Outdoor Wi-Fi Camera. Despite one part of its name, the OEM asserts it is sleek and sophisticated to have inside the house as well. It also packs features such as IR for night vision, AI to help avoid unnecessary user alerts and "next-gen" IPv6/WPA3 support.

A report by analyst Ming Chi-Kuo indicates that increased competition among Apple's mini-LED suppliers could lead to a larger than expected volume of iPads and Macs shipping with mini-LED displays, both next year and in 2022.

The renders are based on the specs leaked by industry insider Jon Prosser and depict the foldable iPhone featuring an inner display that consists of two hingeless screens similar to the Microsoft Surface Duo design. Artist theHacker34 also lists some specs that are probably on his wishlist, as no other source has mentioned some of these.

Apple recently seeded the developer demo for iOS 14.2 and iPadOS 14.2, seemingly skipping over iOS 14.1 and iPadOS 14.1. While we're not sure of the reason for the nomenclature change, iPadOS and iOS 14.2 both introduce minor updates, chief of which is better Shazam integration for music aficionados.

Apple’s A14 Bionic SoC reveal indicated what might be the smallest generation on generation leap we’ve seen to date from Cupertino. Is the near-static performance due to issues with the 5nm process? Or did Apple just fire the last shots in a smartphone spec war that’s spiralled out of control?

Vecnos is a spin-off from Ricoh that is dedicated to making compact lifestyle cameras. It has finally unveiled its first 360-degree camera in full. The IQUI fits its 4 proprietary lenses and their controls into a laser-pointer form-factor. It can take 3840x1920 video at 30fps, and has its own app to send these shots to a smartphone.

Just days before Apple’s September 16th launch event, a chassis leak highlights the innards of the premium Apple iPhone 12 Pro, showing off where the phone’s 5G antenna will be placed, possible LiDAR scanner positioning, and its flat metal sides.

Apple looks to have abandoned the rumored 120 Hz ProMotion display for this year's iPhone 12 Pro model. The on again-off again rumor has been vacillating all year but now seems to be definitely off the table with production about to ramp up in the next couple of weeks.

A leaked carrier email suggests that customers have until October 20 to pre-order the iPhone 12 and Apple Watch Series 6. It indicates that the iPhone 12 will be released sometime in October. However, the email neglects to mention which variants of the iPhone 12 it pertains to.

Apple could be set to launch the iPhone 12 in two waves according to a report from supply chain rag Digitimes. Based on the supply of components, it believes that the 6.1-inch iPhone 12 models will be the first to ship followed by the 5.4-inch iPhone 12 and 6.7-inch iPhone 12 Pro Max.

The Withings ScanWatch hybrid smartwatch is now available to buy in Europe, and it can be purchased from £249.95/€279 (about US$330). This incredible health-focused wearable comes with its own on-demand electrocardiogram, respiratory scanner, atrial fibrillation detector, medical-grade SpO2 oximeter, and the ScanWatch is water resistant to 165 ft (50 m).

Apple could be set to launch the Watch Series 6 and iPad Air 4 this week. Separate tips by leaker Jon Prosser and @LeaksApplePro peg the launch of both devices for September 8.

Bang & Olufsen has a well-earned reputation as the purveyor of high-quality audio experiences so it is always exciting when the company launches a new set of headphones. Its new H95 compact over ear headphones have all the traditional hallmarks we expect from B&O blending enhanced comfort with active noise cancellation.

A market analyst report concerning the best-selling smartphones of the first half of 2020 has placed the Apple iPhone 11 in top position with remarkable sales of 37.7 million units. The six months have also been kind to Xiaomi, with four Redmi devices, including the Redmi 8A and Redmi Note 8 Pro, making it into the list of the top 10 most-shipped smartphones.

The latest version of iOS, released today, includes a new system for tracking and notifying users that have been exposed to COVID-19. iOS 13.7 now drops the need for public health officials to maintain an app for exposure tracking. Instead, the system is baked directly into iOS 13.7.

Square Enix has announced that the remastered Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles title has gone live. It has PS4, Nintendo Switch, Android and iOS versions, across which gamers can form teams and explore all the dungeons. It also has a Lite (or free) version and a Mimic Mode for those who want to play as original characters.