Android

Just three months after the phones were launched, Xiaomi has confirmed that it has sold ten million units of the Redmi Note 8 series. That is, the Redmi Note 8 and Note 8 Pro. This means that the Note 8 phones are actually outselling the Redmi Note 7 phones, which is incredible considering the phones’ relatively lackluster reception by the enthusiast community.

Xiaomi's next mid-range smartphone may arrive as soon as tomorrow, according to new information posted online. The Redmi K30 series will also be 5G capable, throwing up questions about the SoC that will underpin the smartphones. The K20 series successors will sport a radically different design too, along with a new high-resolution Sony camera sensor.
Updated: New marketing photos confirm fingerprint scanner question and confirm launch date. Two Redmi-branded smart devices have been teased too.

Still waiting for Android 10 on your OnePlus 6 or 6T? Well, OnePlus has started releasing the OS upgrade again, but only to handsets in China. You could install the build on any OnePlus 6 or 6T, though.

Some subscription-based streaming platforms have become huge for a number of reasons, the total lack of ads being one of them. However, there are emerging alternatives that reinstate this potential disadvantage back in return for no monthly fee. Research has shown that their uptake in the United States has increased by nearly 10% over the last 12 months.

Samsung Vietnam has released a new trailer for the upcoming Galaxy A series. It is pretty apparent that, with their central punch-hole displays, they will improve on their predecessors in one respect at least. They will launch in this market on December 12, 2019.

The Realme 1, 2, C1 and U1 were all released at various points in 2018. Despite this, their maker has just announced that they will not receive an update to ColorOS 7. This is an upcoming software skin based on Android 10 that the company shares with OPPO.

Huami has released a statement on how its latest device, the Amazfit GTS, did in the recent November 2019 sales event. It claims that the smartwatch was a hit on numerous regional online sales platform. The GTR and Bip Lite wearables also allegedly sold out in 1 hour in 1 store.

Be excited, ye lovers of small smartphones; be very excited. Sony is apparently working on a new compact phone. The Xperia Compact will feature a 5.5-inch display with a physical footprint smaller than that of the Xperia XZ2 Compact and Samsung Galaxy S10e.

DxOMark has shared its thoughts on what it considers to be the best smartphone cameras of 2019, grouped into specific sub-categories. There are a few iffy choices, but one major takeaway from the list is just how impressive the Xiaomi Mi Note 10 Pro is.

Huawei has announced that it will introduce its Watch GT 2 to Indian customers on December 5, 2019. This will be the first device with the new Kirin A1 processor for wearables released to this market. This smartwatch also boasts a 2-week battery life and a bezel-less display.

The smartphone OEM Realme started life as a spin-off from the company OPPO. Now, however, it has emerged that the 2 brands are effectively going their separate ways. The younger firm is now its own private company with its own CEO and R&D unit.

We genuinely believe the Redmi K20 and K20 Pro—and the Mi 9T rebrands—to be the best-value premium smartphones on the market. Xiaomi is set to release a successor this month, the Redmi K30, but things aren't looking quite as exciting as one would expect.

Samsung released the Galaxy Buds earlier in the year. The AirPods competitor have an MSRP of US$129.99 but can be had for quite a bit cheaper right now. For US$99.99, to be exact—US$30 or 23% off.

A Chinese user has reportedly claimed that a Redmi Note 7 Pro caught fire, resulting in the complete destruction of the phone. This would be the second time in two weeks that a mobile device from this OEM has apparently ended up in such a state. The company has denied the incident is related to the quality of the phone in question.

Google is pushing a new update in which its SMS app will gain the ability to tell between 'real' and 'fake' corporate messages. This will be done in line with the search giant's new "Verified" initative, by which businesses register with Google so as to prevent their communiques being automatically labelled as a form of spam and never reaching their customers.

LG's original 2019 flagship smartphone has started to see updates to Android 10. However, this is only reportedly applicable to units in the OEM's native South Korea at present. This upgrade also apparently comes with the November 2019 security patch.

Mobvoi's Black Friday/Cyber Monday sale has started. It includes a 25% discount on its Ticwatch Pro and Pro 4G/LTE models, which are normally US$249.99 and $299 respectively. The OEM is also offering other smartwatches at up to $50 off.

OnePlus' Android 10 rollout to the 6 and 6T has been beset by issues, but things could be on the up. Having pulled the update earlier this month, the company has now pushed out a new beta build to both handsets. OnePlus was hopeful that it would re-release Android 10 to the 6 and 6T this week, but that timeline has slipped once again.

The Xiaomi Redmi Note 8 Pro has now started receiving Android 10-based builds of MIUI 11, having been spotted on Geekbench running Android 10 earlier this month. The 1.9 GB update contains the November 2019 set of security patches too, along with a few MIUI 11-related optimisations.

With the leaks about the Galaxy S11 series hotting up, a recently discovered patent suggests that Samsung is prepping something called a "Bright Night Sensor" for mobile devices. The well-informed Russian Blue cat has been dropping some hints over the last few days about its potential uses too.

The Google Pixel 4 series started at US$799 at launch. However, the OEM's Black Friday event brings it down to $200 off each variant. Their predecessors are also included in this sale, as are the Pixel 3a and 3a XL.

Lepow has announced a 30% discount on its portable monitor as of tomorrow (November 30, 2019). This product is a 15.6-inch display with a built-in stand-cover and dual speakers. It has USB type C and mini HDMI ports so as to be compatible with mobile devices, PCs and consoles.

The leaker Ishan Agarwal claims to have heard that the Samsung Galaxy A11, A31 and A41 are definitely in the works. Furthermore, these low- to mid-range smartphones will have more internal memory compared to their first generations. They are all thought to launch in 2020.

Huawei is finalising EMUI 10 for the Mate 20 Lite, and has now made the OS update available to download via its HiCare app. The build has a few minor bugs, but that it is to be expected from a release preview.

While we're fans of the Mi Note 10, its US$610 MSRP was rather off-putting, and we recommended potential buyers to wait for a sale if they planned to buy the device. Well, here's one such deal. The Mi Note 10 can now be had for just US$466, about US$140 off its MSRP.

A series of official Samsung Android 10 rollout roadmaps all cite the Galaxy S10 phones as billed to receive the stable Android 10 update in January. That isn't the case for all regions, though, as some owners of the S10, S10+, and S10e are already confirming receipt of the OTA.

Over a year after going on sale, the first-gen Asus ROG Phone is now receiving the Android Pie update. Yes, you read that correctly; Pie, not Android 10. The rollout is a staged one and the OTA will get to all users of the device over the next few days.

The Red Magic 3 wants to prove that you don't have to spend $800+ on a high-end gaming smartphone. The latest model with the Snapdragon 855 Plus SoC and UFS 3.0 storage will be only $450 USD until December 3.

A Redmi Note 7S owner has reported a fault with his device that he believes caused it to explode. The user claimed that the smartphone was treated in a normal manner and wasn’t even charging when it caught on fire. However, after a thorough examination of the melted handset, Xiaomi has concluded it was caused by “customer induced damage”.
Xiaomi has provided Notebookcheck with an updated statement in regard to this incident.

Recently, reports of Twitter's intentions to delete inactive accounts, starting December 2019, came to light. However, the company has come up against resistance to this idea from more vocal users. Their main objection appears to be that the move would result in the removal of the timelines of the dead.

Recently, Asus released an Android 10 beta for the ZenFone 5z. Now, the phone has a stable build that will be rolled out to users in general. This update adds a dark theme and a more streamlined UI to the 2018 flagship.

The Samsung SM-N770F has shown up on the Geekbench 5 database. This phone is thought to become the latest addition to the Galaxy Note 10 family. Its new leak shows that it is a 6GB device with the Exynos 9810 SoC.

The Samsung Galaxy M30s is a triumphant midrange smartphone. The phablet not only has a large, bright and colour accurate AMOLED panel but also class-leading battery, among other positives. If you need a smartphone to last over a day between charges, then the Galaxy M30s could be the device for you.

Oppo’s VP of Global Marketing Brian Shen has tweeted out the first official teaser for the forthcoming Reno3 Pro 5G handset. According to Shen, the device is 7.7 mm thin putting it on track to be the thinnest dual-mode mid-range 5G handset on the market when it launches next month.

Samsung has decided it wants in on the PC game streaming action. The company has just launched its own solution for streaming PC games to its Galaxy smartphones called PlayGalaxy Link that works over both Wi-Fi and Cellular networks.

Xiaomi has secured 3C approval for a new smartphone with dual-band 5G. Furthermore, this device - which comes in 2 variants - has a maximum charging rate of 66 watts. Therefore, it is likely that this product may be a new flagship, or a high-value mid-ranger at least.

The LG G8X ThinQ could be a dream come true for some people. The handset comes with a second screen, following on from the V50 Dual Screen accessory that LG launched at the start of this year. The G8X ThinQ is more than just another gimmicky folding smartphone though, as we discovered during our tests.

Honor India has announced a new beta program for the 8X. It allows participants to test a new version of EMUI based on Android 10, on their devices. However, it is only open to the phone's 4GB RAM/64GB internal storage variant at present.

Xiaomi already announced a 50X zoom lens, but Vivo now wants to push the limits even further with a 60X hybrid periscope lens. The latest teasers show that periscope lens is separated from the other rear cameras and is also not protruding thanks to system that includes light prisms. Vivo also plans to release a Pro version for the X30, which will feature more powerful rear cameras.

Having invested hundreds of millions of dollars in its foldable Infinity Flex Super AMOLED display technology, it makes sense that Samsung is keen to deploy it in the marketplace where it feels it can gain some traction. Enter a patent for a foldable Galaxy Tab that is very similar to the Galaxy Fold smartphone, but larger and without a secondary display.

Samsung has sent out a ton of One UI 2.0 beta updates to the Galaxy S10 phones, so it makes sense that the phone will be the first to get the stable Android 10 update. The complete, official update roadmap for Samsung's Android 10-based One UI 2.0 rollout is here.

Huawei and Honor began sending out the Android 10-based EMUI 10 and Magic UI 3.0 updates to their current-gen flagships. At the Honor V30 launch yesterday, Honor revealed its release roadmap for the Android 10 update and there are a few surprises in store, with just 13 devices billed to get the update.

The Samsung Galaxy S11+ has appeared in some renders and a video published by CashKaro in conjunction with @OnLeaks. The well-crafted images show the forthcoming flagship smartphone with a central punch-hole front-facing camera and a huge housing on the rear for the penta-lens camera setup, which apparently features a laser-focusing module.
Update: Another noted leaker has claimed that these S11+ renders based on CAD drawings are wrong.

Google introduced Ambient Mode for the Assistant at I/O 2019. It is a kind of alternative interface for Android devices that makes them take on the functions of a smart display. This can involve a revolving series of screens showing calendar information, photos or other content.