Android

Extensive leaks have revealed numerous details about the Galaxy A34 5G and Galaxy A54 5G, two of Samsung's next-generation mid-range smartphones. Both will launch with 120 Hz Super AMOLED displays and triple rear-facing cameras, among other similarities.

Android 14 has arrived in its first incarnation. Google has made many back-end changes with Android 14 Developer Preview 1, although there are a few hints at what could be to come for the next version of Android, including big screen improvements and greater customisation options.

Samsung has presented the BMW M Edition, a special edition version of the Galaxy S23 Ultra. Samsung claims to have been inspired by the BMW M3 E30 and will sell a mere 1,000 units in South Korea with a sole 12 GB of RAM and 512 GB of storage configuration.

An Android device calling itself the Nokia G22 has rolled up onto the Geekbench database for the first time. However, the alleged 2023 device's appearance might cast a dark cloud over hopes for significant upgrades in this round of HMD Global-brand smartphones, not to mention those for software support in the existing G21.

Meizu is reportedly heading back to the Android market with smartphones based on the top-end Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor in 2023. The Pro variant of this alleged 20 series may have been captured in a new live image that points to a highly original, possibly emoji-inspired, rear camera hump for the putative flagship device. It is also now said to launch with a new version of its Flyme UI out of the box.

Realme's inaugural, official Coca-Cola Limited Edition smartphone has been unveiled as a 10 Pro 5G that goes for more than a standard SKU with the exact same specs. It does, at least, come in new and exclusive packaging full of on-theme souvenirs. Only 1000 units of this box will be available for sale on the Indian market later in February 2023.

While Xiaomi looks geared to debut the Xiaomi 13 Lite, Xiaomi 13, and Xiaomi 13 Pro globally at MWC, the company's main flagship, the Xiaomi 13 Ultra will launch in a few months instead and could be joined by the Band 8, with the fitness band reportedly having now entered production.

Samsung's new flagship phones, the Galaxy S23 series, debuted with new performance modes: Standard and Light. That feature appears to have been a masterstroke, with benchmark numbers indicating a slight drop in performance when in Light, accompanied by significant prime core efficiency gains.

The launch of the cheapest member of the Pixel 7 family is approaching, with the Pixel 7a likely arriving this spring during Google I/O 2023. In the meantime, a third-party case manufacturer has already listed cases for the mid-range handheld with accompanying render images.

KT Pocket is now selling the KT-R1, its 4.5-inch and 3:2 Android gaming handheld. Based around the MediaTek Helio G99, the gaming handheld also calls on a 5,000 mAh battery and up to 8 GB of RAM.

Some Galaxy S22 Ultra owners may be wondering if an upgrade to that former flagship phablet's new 23-series counterpart is a worthwhile upgrade, especially in terms of the alleged edge offered by incremental design changes that involve updated Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on the front and back of the device. Some experienced YouTubers may have come up with the answer to that question.

The Realme GT Neo5 has launched with a flat, "flagship-grade" 1.5K screen of 144Hz in refresh rate, 1,200 nits of peak brightness and 1,500Hz in touch-sampling rate included. It can combine this speedy display with the Android smartphone market's new top charging rate of 240W, not to mention up to 16GB of RAM and 1TB of internal storage. Then again, for consumers who prioritize battery size or savings, there is also the Neo5 150W.

Samsung's plans for its future chipsets, the Exynos 2300, Exynos 2400, and Exynos 2500 have since been shrouded in mystery. That may have changed now, however, with a Korean leaker now providing insight into the subject, with an ambitious "Exynos 2500" seemingly set to mark Samsung's return to the flagship SoC space in 2025.

According to new reports, Xiaomi is preparing to release the Redmi Note 12 Turbo only in China. However, the handset could also arrive in other markets as the POCO X5 GT, the third device in the POCO X5 series after the POCO X5 5G and POCO X5 Pro 5G.

Recently there have been reports that One UI 5.1 reserves upwards of 60 GB storage for system partitions on the Galaxy S23, Galaxy S23 Plus and Galaxy S23 Ultra. Samsung may continue to insist on pre-installing third-party apps on One UI, but claims of 60 GB in bloatware are far from true.

We recently reviewed the Lenovo Tab P11 5G and were quite taken with the fairly inexpensive tablet, which you can even use to make phone calls. Our findings are summed up for you here.

Xiaomi has almost inevitably teamed up with Hello Kitty for a version of the Civi 2 Android smartphone fashioned after the famous cat-person character. It is the same price as a standard SKU of the same device, albeit with reduced availability and a new release date. Then again, it is also now the only Civi 2 with a photochromic rear panel.

Amazon is offering the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite at 39% below its list price. While the retailer regularly has the tablet on sale, the latest discount is the deepest yet. The sale applies to any of the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite's colourways but only 64 GB SKUs.

Xiaomi has outlined global launch dates for the Xiaomi 13 and Xiaomi 13 Pro, the company's latest flagship smartphones. While the Xiaomi 13 Lite is also expected to arrive later this month, the Xiaomi 13 Ultra will remain absent until the spring. Photos of its 90 W fast charger have now leaked online, though.

POCO has revealed which of its current smartphone stack will receive MIUI 14. Based on Android 12 or Android 13, MIUI 14 arrived first globally on the POCO X5 Pro 5G. However, the POCO F3, POCO F4, POCO M2, POCO M3, POCO M4, POCO M5, POCO X3 and POCO X4 series should all soon be eligible for MIUI 14.

Google is rolling out another update for the Pixel Watch. This month's update arrives as RWD9.220429.075 or RWD9.220429.075.J1, depending on where you live. The update brings the Pixel Watch onto the February 2023 security patch, mirroring a comparable update for Pixel smartphones.

European pricing for the Xiaomi 13 Lite has leaked online. The same leaker has also shared launch configurations and from when the forthcoming mid-range smartphone should be available. The Xiaomi 13 Lite is expected to be a re-badged CIVI 2, which Xiaomi launched a few months ago in its home market.

The 6.6-inch Android smartphone from the Lenovo-owned company has reached its lowest price to date on Amazon, which is where the 2022 Motorola Edge can now be ordered for half its original MSRP.

The OPPO Find N2 Flip looks set to make its way over to the global market shortly. While it will not be sold in the US and near markets, the foldable will debut in Europe in a few weeks, with a new leak now providing insight into OPPO's pricing for the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip4 rival.

The TV 65 Q2 Pro is OnePlus' latest smart home product for the Indian market. It offers a new 4K QLED "home theater experience", driven at 120Hz by a MediaTek processor. The Q2 Pro comes with its own in-built Horizon soundbar co-engineered with Dynaudio, Gamma Engine Ultra motion optimizations and HDMI 2.1. The new Google TV has been unveiled alongside an unexpected inaugural addition to the OnePlus connected-device ecosystem.

The 11R has just been unveiled as the latest OnePlus smartphone exclusive to India. It has been revealed as a way to get at the latest Android flagship look (albeit not all of the specs) at about 70% of the cost of a new 11. It is now joined in its R series by equally market-specific version of the OEM's new flagship TWS earbuds.

OnePlus has finally released the OnePlus 11 outside China. The OnePlus 11 relies on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset, as well as three high-resolution rear-facing cameras, a 5,000 mAh battery and 80 W or 100 W fast charging.

An unreleased Xiaomi smartphone has passed through the 3C in China. Reportedly the Redmi Note 12 Turbo Edition or the Redmi Note 12T Pro, the handset is expected to launch in the spring with a Snapdragon 7 Gen 2 chipset and 67 W fast charging, among other features.

OnePlus has a new flagship Android smartphone it could take to the next Mobile World Congress; however, the OEM is now said to go beyond current devices for its next major international trade showcase. It is now said to include a follow-up to the innovative Concept One smartphone prototype that starred at CES a few years ago.

OnePlus has presented a new upper mid-range smartphone in China. Dubbed the OnePlus Ace 2, the handset combines a 1240p AMOLED display with a Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 chipset and a 5,000 mAh battery, among other features.

According to new reports, the OnePlus 11 will start at much closer to €800 than earlier leaks suggested. The forthcoming flagship could be available for as little as €869 with 16 GB of RAM in some markets, too.

Google has released a new round of updates for its recent smartphones. This month's update is focused on bugs fixes, as well as bringing the Pixel 4a through Pixel 7 Pro onto the latest set of Android security patches.

The Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 supposedly scored 1,930 and 6,236 in Geekbench's single and multi-core tests. The SoC will allegedly feature a 1+5+2 core configuration and be 20% more power-efficient compared to the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2.

The very affordable 10-inch Android tablet from Lenovo convinced us with its excellent price-performance ratio, which has now become even better since Amazon is now selling the Tab M10 Plus at a significant 29% discount.

A new leak has revealed what the book of the Find X6 Pro looks like, Oppo's next flagship smartphone. Rumoured to be arriving in Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 and MediaTek Dimensity 9200 variants, the Find X6 Pro will offer a triple rear-facing camera set-up with a periscope camera. Hasselblad tunings and a MariSilicon ISP will return for the Find X series too.

OPPO is now said to have a third-gen foldable Android flagship with a potentially significant camera upgrade in the works. The "Find N3" could thus emerge more powerful than many other top-end devices in these terms, and make it one of a very small handful of devices in its category with the same spec. The device could emerge looking a lot like its conventional counterpart, the Find X6 Pro.

The Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra debuted last week with new cameras and performance hardware. It appears all of that hardware, as well as solid optimization, has resulted in a flagship that delivers excellent battery life—significantly better than the S22 Ultra, and within touching distance of Apple's best.

Tecno has announced that it is coming to MWC 2023 with its first ever flexible-display mobile device. The Phantom V Fold is officially backed to rival devices such as the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold4, albeit with a different processor that will also make it a world first by default. The chipset should also confer 5G and Bluetooth 5.3 on the upcoming "large-screen" phablet.

Xiaomi has lifted the lid on the POCO X5 5G, one-half of the POCO X5 series alongside the POCO X5 Pro 5G. While the latter is a re-branded Redmi Note 12 Pro Speed Edition, it appears that Xiaomi has created the POCO X5 5G by taking the POCO X4 Pro 5G and trimming it to down in certain areas.

Xiaomi has launched the POCO X5 Pro 5G, the global answer to the Redmi Note 12 Pro Speed Edition. The POCO X5 Pro 5G is also the first device to launch globally with MIUI 14, beating out the Xiaomi 13 and Xiaomi 13 Pro.

The Nothing Phone (2) will reportedly pack a high-end unannounced Snapdragon 8 series SoC from Qualcomm, a 120 Hz AMOLED screen, a 5,000 mAh battery and 12 GB RAM. Nothing supposedly plans to launch it sometime in Q3 2023.

Samsung's latest Galaxy S23-series flagship Android smartphones have been released to pre-order in India via several channels, Amazon included. They start at ~US$970 on that site, rising to at least ~US$1,515 for the top-end Ultra option. Then again, for those who would be content with their 2022 counterparts, they are now available at discounts of up to 38% right now.

Honor will unleash its Magic5 line of devices as potential Samsung Galaxy S23 series rivals at MWC 2023. The OEM has yet to hint at the flagship Android smartphones' specs in detail - however, the Chinese regulator 3C has reportedly done some of this work already, spoiling their charging upgrades year-on-year - or lack thereof, that is.

Details of the Samsung Galaxy S23 and S23+ camera hardware have now been revealed following the flagship series' debut last week. While the two phones fail to get new main cameras, two of their four snappers do get upgrades, with the most notable seemingly being the selfie camera.

The Pad 2 - widely suspected to be OPPO's version of the OnePlus Pad - has been all but proven to exist through its appearance by name in a new leak. This database listing might confirm that the Pad 2 will connect to Bluetooth using MediaTek silicon - however, the exact identity of its Dimensity-series SoC still remains somewhat of a mystery.

Oppo has unveiled the Reno8 T and Reno8 T 5G, the sole members of the Reno8 T series. Despite having similar names, the pair share barely any components, other than a few cameras. Both are firmly mid-range smartphones, though.

The Vivo X90 Pro Plus may offer sparkling camera hardware on paper, with a 50 MP and 1-inch primary camera, as well as two high-resolution telephoto sensors. However, camera analysis reveals that the Vivo X90 Pro Plus does not have enough to topple the likes of the Huawei Mate 50 Pro, iPhone 14 Pro Max or even the iPhone 13 Pro.

Fairphone is now rolling out the first significant OS update to the Fairphone 4. The company hopes to deliver Android 13 in a more timely manner too, although not all regions are eligible for the Android 12 update yet.