Software

Earlier, a Motorola Razr 2019 leak suggested that it would be priced at up to €1500 on its European launch. Now, a new rumor indicates that it will in fact cost the equivalent of €1680 when it is released to the Swedish market in January 2020. For context, the Galaxy Fold costs about €2160 in this country.

The Samsung Camera app's latest update reportedly contains references to what next-generation premium phones from this OEM may be capable of. Its APK allegedly contains strings indicating the potential for 8K recording and a 20:9 aspect ratio. As others also mention 108M pixel counts, this may pertain to a Galaxy S10 or Note 10 successor.

Huawei has now beaten Samsung to the punch, as the Chinese OEM is currently sending out the Android 10-based EMUI 10 update to its flagships around the world. The list of devices to have received the update include the Mate 20, Mate 20 Pro, Mate 20 X, P30, P30 Pro, and a few others.

Microsoft unveiled the first gameplay trailer for Age of Empires IV today at the X019 event. The trailer offered a snapshot of two in-game civilizations: The English and the Mongols. At only a minute long, though, it raises more questions than it answers.

Lenovo has launched the Smart Display 7, which, like its predecessors, is a smart speaker with an in-built touchscreen. This new version has its display above its speakers this time, although they are still 10-watt (W) drivers. It also has Google Assistant, Wi-Fi 802.11ac and an ambient color sensor.

Sony has now released its official Android 10 update roadmap. The Xperia 1 and Xperia 5 will receive the OS update before the year runs out, while other phones will follow next year. Sadly, the Xperia XZ1 phones are missing from the list, which means they've been abandoned after getting just one OS update, and that's a shame.

Ten of the mainline Final Fantasy games are coming to Microsoft's Xbox Game Pass subscription service. Every main Final Fantasy game since Final Fantasy VII, save for the two MMORPGs (Final Fantasy XI and Final Fantasy XIV), will be released for Xbox Game Pass throughout 2020.

Google will begin rolling out RCS support to all Android devices today. The rollout will happen in stages. Additionally, RCS will only be available through Google's Messages app. However, the rollout will eventually come to all Android devices, replacing the outdated SMS system currently employed.

Brave, a Chromium-based browser designed around user privacy and anonymity, has finally released version 1.0 after four years in development. The browser has a unique method for upending the traditional ad-revenue basis of websites built around blockchain technologies and anonymity.

DJI has introduced its Remote ID, which allows a drone to "beam" its identity and other prevalent information to any smartphone on the ground via Wi-Fi. The company has developed this modality, which can be used through an app, in accordance with government recommendations for safety and compliance while flying personal aerial robots.

A new study of wearable uptake in the US shows that 56% of its participants own such a device. Furthermore, another 13% of this group reported considering the purchase of one by 2020. This study's publication also contained some recommendation for Google's next moves in this game following its Fitbit acquisition.

Google has reportedly set up partnerships, or at least talks for partnerships, with various US banks and credit unions to offer a new kind of checking account linked to the Pay service. This may help it battle Apple, not to mention other bodies such as AliPay and Samsung Pay.

Microsoft has let it be known that checking for updates on Windows 10 PCs that run the stable-channel 1903 version may result in the ability to download its successor, 1909. This November 2019 replacement for that build can also now be accessed by business users and server maintainers.

Huawei launched the EMUI 10 beta a while ago, and has now started sending out the full, stable Android 10-based EMUI 10 update to its current-gen flagship device, the P30 Pro. The OTA comes in as a heavy 4.99 GB download, though.

NVIDIA is offering a free copy of the latest Call of Duty PC game with every purchase of an RTX graphics card, desktop or notebook. However, this deal's window is shrinking: it is only available until November 18, 2019. The GPUs must be bought from nvidia.com or its official partners for the promotion to apply.

The Galaxy A51 will probably be one of Samsung's new phones for 2020. It has attracted its first 360-degree set of renders (from OnLeaks), which incorporate rumors and theories about the phone such as that it will have quad rear cameras. The phone is also now depicted as having a punch-hole camera in its display.

The Honor V30 and V30 Pro are now scheduled for launch on November 26, 2019 in Beijing. This new series has also officially been confirmed to support 5G. It is also now linked to 90-hertz displays and a new alogrithm called Camera Matrix.

The European "responsible vulnerability disclosure" specialists Swascan claim to have discovered that the popular virtual conference service GoToMeeting may be subject to various common weakness enumerations (or CWEs). They may affect the ability to set up meetings with the privacy normally expected of these online events.

Google's Stadia game streaming service is coming November 19. The service will initially launch with 12 games (listed below) and will eventually gain 14 more before the end of the year. Only those that purchased a Stadia Founder's Edition bundle will be able to access the service on November 19.

XDA contributors have found that Google has included code that supports its long-touted "Lift to Talk" setting for Assistant in its app. This feature allows the voice-activated AI in question to be prepared to answer queries whenever a user holds a given device up to their face. However, the researchers have found this option is still buggy when enabled.

Samsung is now rolling a new software update out to the Galaxy A70s. The OTA package adds the ability to use Link to Windows, as well as USB type C headphones. It also contains general stability upgrades and the October 2019 security patches.

The Amazfit Sports Watch 3 was released in China recently. However, its series is also marketed internationally as the Stratos line of sports-focused wearables. Its 3rd generation is now set for launch across multiple European countries later in November 2019.

YouTube will update its terms of service to more clearly point out that the website can shut down channels that are deemed unprofitable. While this has sparked passionate debate among users and content creators, the law concerning a website's control over its posted content is nuanced and complex. As it stands, it looks like YouTube is well within its rights to shut down channels that it deems conflict with its terms of service.

Samsung is bringing a few Galaxy Note 10-exclusive features to the Galaxy S10 line. The update improves system-wide and picture-specific search and an Auto Hotspot feature that can automate connecting a device with a Samsung account to a Galaxy S10's hotspot. The update is rolling out, though the release timeline varies based on country.

Samsung has sneaked a 3D form of Face Unlock into the 5G version of the Galaxy S10 with its latest update. It works on this variant only as it has a time-of-flight (TOF) sensor in its front-facing punch-hole. Therefore, this phone's facial recognition may now approach iPhone-like levels of security and accuracy.

Asus is currently inviting those who own the ROG Phone II to join its Android 10 beta program for this device. However, this only appears to apply to the ZS660KL model, the 12GB/512GB international variant. Those who wish to get this update need to join the OEM's mobile device forum, have an Asus Member's account and be prepared to submit a lot of sensitive info about the phone in question.

Canon USA has unveiled its inaugural 8K broadcast lenses, the UHD-DIGISUPER 51 and 7x10.7 KAS S attachments. The company is pitching them at the capture of live TV in this UHD resolution. They also have an image format size that could become standard for the same.

Apple release iOS 13.2.2 this week, bringing a fix to the RAM management bug introduced in iOS 13.2. There are a few other bug fixes and patches. Considering Apple's terrible track record with iOS 13, it may be prudent to wait a few days to update your iPhone or iPad.

Home theaters brought in a total of US$7.7 billion last year. However, this market value is thought to be capable of growing by up to $5.7 billion more over the next 6 years. The sound bar sector may grow at the greatest rate over this period.

Pokémon GO remains one of the world's most popular augmented-reality (AR) mobile games. However, it has a persistent discrepancy as a title in this ecosystem, which is a lack of Pokéstops, particularly in more isolated regions. Therefore, its maker Niantic is about to launch a more global method of taking user suggestions for additional such item-sources in the future.

The Galaxy Tab S6 is Samsung's latest premium slate. The OEM has just demonstrated it is committed to keeping it that way with a new software update containing the latest Android security patch level. This upgrade has also reached Galaxy Note 10- and S10-series phones.

3 new Blade-series phones are now live on the ZTE website. 2 of these - the Blade 10 Prime and A7 Prime - are available through the carrier Visible. The Blade 10, on the other hand, is an unlocked device sold by the OEM itself.

OnePlus is now rolling OxygenOS 10.0.5 out for 7T users on this OEM's 'stable' update channel. There is also an Open Beta analog for the same. Those who own the 7 or 7 Pro and participate in this program also have a new build to try out.

The OEM Vivo held a press conference today (November 7, 2019) to introduce its X30, a phone that will ship with the dual-mode 5G chipset, Samsung's Exynos 980. Oddly, the phone itself was not displayed, nor was its spec-sheet. However, new leaks point to a 90 hertz (Hz) AMOLED display, a 4500mAh battery and a Pro variant.

The Motorola One Power is now reportedly capable of running Android 10. However, before becoming eligible for this update, a user needs to sign in to the OEM's Feedback Network (or MFN) for that device. This may give them access to a build that, while at the cutting edge of the OS, lacks compatiblity with some potentially important features at present.

Samsung's Developer Conference (SDC) 2019 contained numerous interesting announcements, not the least that Tizen OS for TVs can be ported to third-party devices. In addition, there are now additional developer-friendly facilities for this part of the OEM's ecosystem. They include more granular user opt-outs for ads.

Google provides hardware that runs its own OS with automatic updates for a fixed period of time after their release. This software policy applies to a range of devices, from Chromebooks to Chromebits, the end-of-life (EOL) of which is known as Auto Update Expiration (or AUE). 140 of these products have had their AUEs amended by 6 months to a year each.

Xiaomi also promised details on a fifth generation of its smart TVs during the Mi CC9 Pro debut. The OEM made good on this - less expectedly, it introduced 2 new variants of the same during the event. The Mi TV 5 Pro is the one that gets the leaked 4K QLED panel, as well as some other impressive specs.

Pokémon GO will be getting a live AR multiplayer feature sometime soon. Currently called "Buddy Adventure," the feature will allow two players to interact with each other's Buddy Pokémon in real-time through their smartphone cameras. The feature is based on developer Niantic's real-time AR networking technology.

Apple released the first developer beta for iOS 13.3 yesterday. While the update seems to fix the RAM management issues discovered in iOS 13.2, it offers little else. In fact, a new bug in the iOS 13.3 beta disallows the use of Beats Solo Pro headphones; an iPhone running iOS 13.3 Beta 1 will not recognize the headphones at all.

A security researcher discovered the first worm to take advantage of the BlueKeep in older versions of Windows exploit disclosed earlier this year. Machine running Windows 7 and below have a critical security flaw that can allow attackers full access. This attack installed a Monero cryptocurrency miner without tripping any flags other than high CPU usage. Considering the number of organizations and government agencies that still rely on legacy Windows machines, BlueKeep could turn out to be a much larger threat than many realize.

Adobe has unveiled a new camera app for iOS and Android devices at the Adobe Max 2019 conference. Called Photoshop Camera, the app allows for live application of filters, effects, and scene adjustments by leveraging the company's Sensei AI platform. Photoshop Camera is now available as a limited preview with official launch expected in early 2020.

House of Marley's Exodus is a pair of premium over-ear headphones with 50-millimeter (mm) drivers and a sustainable provenance. Their latest refresh has active noise cancellation (ANC). They are also rated for a 28-hour battery life with this feature on, and up to 80 hours without.

Nokia is working on Android 10 for the 9 PureView. This is evidenced by the leaked build of the ROM for this phone posted to its XDA forum. This version of the OS is believed to be part of official development from the brand, and also exists for other devices such as the 7.1 and 6.1 Plus.

The recent Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield leak has been quite astonishing in its enormity and impact. The games themselves are scheduled for release on November 15 but it now seems the entire Pokédex has been revealed, with 400 Pokémon taking part. However, there are claims that the person behind the leak has been discovered by Nintendo.

Samsung launched PlayGalaxy Link with the Note 10 series. It is a service by which a PC connection makes the games thereon available for streaming via a corresponding app on these phones. Its latest beta extends compatibility to the S10 series.

AOPEN calls its new Chrome OS PC the "Commercial 2" as it asserts it is ready for demanding business environments. Besides its fanless, solid-state design, it is rated to withstand temperatures of up to 40 degrees Celsius. It can run 2 4K displays and is powered by the Intel Celeron 3865U.

So, the MIUI 11 rollout is well underway, with Xiaomi now onto the second phase of its release schedule. However, owners of recent Xiaomi flagships are likely to be left disappointed as they find their handsets left on Android 9.0 Pie, like budget devices such as the Redmi 7 have been.

The Google Pixel 4's Soli Radar feature is authorized for use in only certain geographies as it uses the 60 GHz frequency band. Those wanting to use the Motion Sense features can now do so irrespective of the region by taking advantage of a hidden debug feature. However, this requires unlocking the bootloader and enabling root access.

Popular video app TikTok was purchased by Chinese company ByteDance Technology Co. in 2017 and has since accumulated over 500 million active users. However, ByteDance has recently been placed under investigation by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) over concerns over its handling of the personal data of its 25 million American users as well as its apparent censorship over content incongruent with the Chinese state's version of reality, including strife in Hong Kong and pro-LGBT content.