Android

Rumour has it that Samsung will be introducing a successor to the Galaxy A71 that supports OIS. The so-called Galaxy A72 will not arrive until 2021 at the earliest, but the inclusion of OIS should yield a leap in camera performance for Samsung's mid-range Galaxy A series.

A new certificate issued by the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (or Bluetooth SIG) confirms in no uncertain terms that Samsung has a device called the Galaxy M51 in the works. Other recent leaks strongly suggest this phone will come with a battery rated for 7000mAh in capacity. It is also possible it will act as an M40 successor in 2020.

The Xiaomi Mi A1 has received a July update. The update is being pushed to devices now and contains a few changes from last month's update.

The ROG Phone 3 is arriving on July 22, but that has not stopped two prominent internet personalities from posting images of the device. The device, which succeeds the ROG Phone 2, will feature three rear-facing cameras and the new Snapdragon 865+ SoC among multiple other features befitting a gaming smartphone.

Alleged images of the Xiaomi Mi Mix 2020 smartphone have appeared online, and they offer an interesting solution to getting rid of the punch-hole cut-out for the selfie camera. The likely fan-made renders show the Mi Mix 2020 clad in marble white and sporting a quad-camera system on the rear.

MIUI 12 China Beta ROM is all set to gain new video calling features on select devices such as the Mi 10 Lite and the Redmi K30 Pro, according to a post by a Xiaomi forum moderator. The post also indicates that Xiaomi will be temporarily stopping MIUI 12 rollout for several devices including the Redmi Note 7 and Redmi Note 8 owing to feature and stability issues. Development for Mi 8 series and others will be suspended from September 5.

New information has surfaced on the upcoming Asus Zenfone 7. The Zenfone 7 will succeed the positively received Zenfone 6 and will deliver a number of improvements. A launch date remains unknown.

A recent Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approval has confirmed that the upcoming Samsung SM-R220 is a wearable of the fitness-tracker variety. Now, the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) has set its wireless connectivity spec in stone. This new device may launch alongside the Galaxy Note 20 series on August 5, 2020.

Huawei is thought to have a new series of slates that consists of the MatePad T10 and T10s in the works. They are linked to the Kirin 710A processor and are, thus, thought to be budget devices on their launch. A new leak on Geekbench 4 suggests that at least one of them has 4GB of RAM and runs Android 10.

YouTube appears to have re-enabled HD streaming on its video platform its Indian userbase. The reversal comes several months after YouTube restricted videos to 480p in India, much to the annoyance of fans.

Weibo tipster “Mobile Tip Expert” flagged the presence of the Qualcomm Snapdragon 875G on a leaked product roadmap. The upcoming flagship chip - with a G suffix indicating a gaming focus - will purportedly be built on Samsung’s 5nm process.

Samsung has launched a new low-cost smartphone in India. The Samsung Galaxy M01s comes with a 6.2-inch TFT screen, two rear cameras, a MediaTek Helio P22 SoC, and a 4,000mAh battery. There is only one variant with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of storage, which retails at INR 9,999 (US$133).

Recent EMUI 10 and EMUI 10.1 updates have been causing battery problems on some devices. According to several reports, devices have been unable to charge beyond 60% and have suffered from excessive battery drain.

Google Play Pass in now expanding to other countries following its September launch in the US. Also now in line for access to the subscription service include the UK, France, Australia, Germany, Ireland, Italy, New Zealand and Spain.

TSMC has outlined its fabrication plans for its 5nm fabrication process and what that means for investors in its latest conference call. It is buoyant about what its 5nm node will mean for next generation mobile chips and says chips using the tech, including Apple’s A14, will contribute around 8 percent to its revenue for the next quarter.

The Lenovo L10041 will apparently be called the Lenovo A8, according to a listing on the Thai National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Corporation database. A separate TUV Rheinland listing for the Lenovo A8 indicates that the device will feature a 5000 mAh battery.

Weibo tipster @techmeow shared photos of the Motorola E7, along with a settings screenshot that indicates that the phone will feature a Snapdragon 632 and run Android 10 out of the box. If Motorola prices the E7 right, it could compete successfully with the crowd-pleasing Redmi 9A.

Xiaomi smartphone owners with older devices can still get a taste of the Android 10 operating system thanks to custom ROM providers. In this case, the PixelExperience team has added 10 new Xiaomi devices to its list of supported smartphones, including the Xiaomi Mi 5, Mi 8, Mi 9, Mi Mix, and the Xiaomi Mi A2.

Xiaomi has unveiled its first TV dongle, the Mi TV Stick. The device retails for €39.99 and comes bundled with a smart remote. The Mi TV Stick is one of several devices that Xiaomi has launched today.

The FCC has approved a product with a model number that marks it out as a probable Galaxy Note 10+ successor. Interestingly, it is a 4G/LTE-only mobile device. Its connectivity, while not very cutting-edge, may be a source of some relief for some Samsung fans' wallets.

Xiaomi has fixed the dual-SIM issue that had been affecting some Mi A3 handsets almost as quickly as it caused it. The fix, which arrives courtesy of a new build of MIUI 11, is rolling out now. Understandably, fans and owners of the Mi A3 are unhappy at Xiaomi's repeated missteps with issuing software updates to the device.

Xiaomi has launched the global edition of the Mi Band 5, called the Mi Smart Band 5. Featuring a 1.1-inch AMOLED panel, 11 sports modes and 5 ATM water resistance, the Mi Smart Band 5 retails for €39.99 or £39.99 in the UK. The fitness tracker also has a PPG heart rate sensor and supports up to 14 days of battery life, but NFC, a SpO2 sensor and Alexa integration are absent.

EMUI 10.1 has reached 39 devices, Huawei has confirmed. The number, which includes Honor devices, features recent flagships like the Mate 30 and P30 series. EMUI 10.1 is a modest upgrade over EMUI 10 and is somewhat of a stopgap before the Android 11-based EMUI 11 arrives later this year.

A Samsung SM-T505 has been spotted on Geekbench 5; based on this model number, it is now projected to be the Galaxy Tab A7 (2020) on its launch. Its new benchmarking results include the novel Qualcomm code-name bengal, which may be a lower-end, albeit new, Snapdragon platform on its own debut.

Xiaomi has made its affordable range of Redmi 9 smartphones available across markets worldwide. The Redmi 9 can be had for as little as €149 (US$170), while the Redmi 9C will set you back by €119 (US$135). With its €99 (US$113) price tag, the Redmi 9A is the most affordable smartphone of the lot.

China Telecom has reportedly listed an as-yet unreleased new OPPO phone on its website. It is apparently to be called the A72 5G, and has an SoC represented by an unfamiliar MediaTek model number. According to some other leaks, however, it may also be a Reno 10X Zoom successor.

The Pocophone F1 and the latest Poco M2 Pro are receiving performance and security updates staring today, but there's no sign of MIUI 12 for these devices yet. Poco F1 is already in Phase 2 of the MIUI 12 beta testing, so the stable bits should arrive sometime in August. Meanwhile, the Redmi K20 Indian variant is getting a wider rollout of stable MIUI 12 after having been in beta testing earlier this month.

Xiaomi confirmed a short while ago that it would finally remove the Clean Master app and service from its phones in India, following the ban of the app by the government. The promised update has arrived for the Mi Cleaner app but things may not always be as they seem.

MIUI 12 has arrived for the EU versions of the Xiaomi Redmi K30 Pro and Poco F2 Pro. While the inaugural MIUI 12 update is rolling out to handsets now, there have been multiple reports of the Redmi K20 and Mi 9T handsets failing to upgrade to MIUI 12.

Tipster @UniverseIce stated that current firmware for the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra supports QHD+ resolution and a 120 Hz refresh rate, but not both at the same time. Since this is a feature other devices like the OnePlus 8 Pro already support, we expect that a post-launch update might add this option in.

Another render of the Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 has leaked ahead of its expected release within the next few weeks. The new image details the premium tablet's Book Cover and S Pen accessories. The latter will likely come bundled with the Galaxy Tab S7 and Galaxy Tab S7 Plus, but past performance suggests that the Book Cover will be sold separately for upwards of US$180.

Oppo has launched the world’s fastest smartphone wired and wireless charging systems. Its new wired technology will deliver a 125 W charge while its new wireless charging tech will deliver a 65 W charge. Joining the announcement are a pair of ultra-compact fast charging Super VOOC adapters.

Some alleged Xiaomi Mi 11 renders have started popping up online but fans of the Chinese OEM shouldn’t get too excited about them just yet. Rumored specs for the successor to the Mi 10 include the presence of a Qualcomm Snapdragon 875, a 192 MP main camera sensor, and an unblemished display thanks to an under-screen camera.

The full design of the OnePlus Nord has been revealed ahead of tomorrow's 24-hour pre-order event for the device. Unveiled in two colours, OnePlus has confirmed that the Nord will have an ultra-wide-angle front-facing camera.

Rumour has it that EMUI 11 and its Honor equivalent, Magic UI 4.0, will be based on HarmonyOS. Also known as Hongmeng OS, HarmonyOS is Huawei's proprietary operating system that it has already brought to several devices. Huawei reportedly plans to bring EMUI 11 and Magic UI 4.0 to upwards of 50 devices, too.

An industry insider states that the Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 will come with a side-mounted fingerprint sensor, indicating that Samsung has reserved the in-display option for the higher-end Galaxy Tab S7+. The tablet is expected to sport an 11-inch screen and a 7,000mAh battery. Samsung is expected to unveil both tablets alongside the Galaxy Note 20 on August 5.

A potentially game-changing smartphone in the form of the Redmi K30 Ultra is allegedly in the works, and a possible image of the mystery device has been shared by Redmi boss and notorious teaser Lu Weibing. The rumored Redmi K30 Ultra is expected to boast of a powerful MediaTek Dimensity 1000+ chipset.

Mobvoi has announced that today (July 14, 2020) is the anniversary of its birth as a wearables and smart-things brand. Accordingly, it is holding a sales event for the next 11 or so hours. It includes 10% off a new TicWatch C2+, or a third off the 4G/LTE version of this series' Pro variant.

Xiaomi is now sending out new updates to the Mi 10 and Redmi Note 9. The update for the Mi 10 is a MIUI 12 build, while the Redmi Note 9's OTA is based on MIUI 11. This comes after confirmation that Xiaomi is now opening up the pilot program for global beta MIUI 12 testing on the Mi 10 phones in India.

Realme has launched the Realme C11 and Realme 30W 10,000mAh Dart Charge Power Bank in India. The phone features a MediaTek Helio G35 SoC, 2GB of RAM, 32GB of storage, and a 5,000mAh battery. Prices start at INR INR 7,499 (US$100) for the Realme C11 and INR 1,999 (US$28) for the Realme 30W Dart Charge Power Bank.

OnePlus is building the hype machine for the launch of its affordable 5G-capable OnePlus Nord handset with a new Twitter competition. Ten lucky fans will be able to get their hands on one each of the first ten OnePlus Nord 5G handsets to come off the production lines.

Redmi India has confirmed the release date of the Redmi Note 9, the company's next "Made in India" smartphone. Apparently "Packed with best in class specs" and built to the highest quality to "make heads turn", the Redmi Note 9 will launch on July 20 at 12:00 IST.

A Realme Indonesia employee has posted a new teaser that strongly suggests a new phone with a 6000mAh battery will debut in this market soon. Therefore, it may make a worthy successor to a 5- or C-series device in these terms. However, the new potential threat to the Samsung Galaxy M series' might lacks an exact launch date at present.

Prolific leaker Ice Universe just posted a side-by-side comparison of the Galaxy Note 20 and Galaxy Note 20 Ultra's camera modules. Based on the shape of the cutouts, the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra will get an additional laser autofocus sensor.

"OnePlus Buds" has just been acknowledged as a real product name by their OEM. The company has also announced that they will launch on the same day as its upcoming first-gen Nord smartphone. The former are expected to be TWS earphones that look much like Apple AirPods.

The Pixel 4a may still be unreleased, but Google uploaded a marketing render of it to its Canadian eCommerce platform anyway. The render not only confirms the design of the upcoming mid-range smartphone but also possibly its original release date. There is a rumour about a proposed new release date for the Pixel 4a, too.

Xiaomi's poor form with Android One software is well-documented but the latest stunt may be a tough pill for owners of the Mi A3 to swallow. Mi A3 owners across the globe woke up to a new 1.40 GB OTA that appears to have been intended for Mexican models only, and has now disabled dual-SIM functionality on the phones of those unfortunate enough to have installed it.

Xiaomi has started issuing MIUI 12 to the EU versions of the Redmi K20 Pro and Mi 9T Pro. The devices, which have already received the OS upgrade in other regions, have been included in Round 1 of Xiaomi's MIUI 12 release schedule. Other devices that have been upgraded to MIUI 12 in multiple regions include the Mi 9, Mi 9T and the Redmi K20.

Vivo-owned iQOO just unveiled its FlashCharge technology that allows smartphone batteries to be charged at 120W. It takes only five minutes to charge a 4,000mAh battery from zero to fifty percent and fifteen minutes to top it up entirely. It is unclear how long we have to wait before the tech makes its way to an iQOO smartphone.