ARM

The discovery of a device called the Samsung SM-E5260 on 3C has led to speculation that the OEM is working on a 5G phone called the Galaxy F52. Therefore, it might be part of a series that is normally exclusive to the Indian market. However, there are signs that, as with the F62, it may not be a completely new product.

Chipsee has developed new add-ons for the Raspberry Pi Computer Module 4, including one that turns it into an all-in-one PC. The so-called All-In-One Pi supports VESA desktop mounts in two colours. There is also an Industrial Pi board that utilises the Compute Module 4 as a 7-inch tablet with optional 4G connectivity.

The Raspberry Pi 400 is a powerful single-board computer with a built-in keyboard. Now, Adafruit has developed a Cyberdeck for it that sits above the keyboard. The expansion should be one of the simplest ways to add a small display without hooking the Raspberry Pi 400 to an external monitor.

Qualcomm has announced the Snapdragon 780G for upper mid-range smartphones in 2021. The new chipset features two high-performance Arm Cortex-A78 cores also found in the flagship Snapdragon 888 SoC along with six high-efficiency Cortex-A55 cores.

The Apple M1 8-core chip has finally managed to leapfrog the Intel Core i7-11700K in PassMark’s CPU Mark chart for single-thread performance in desktop processors. This leaves only the top-end Rocket Lake i9-11900K ahead of the Apple Silicon. While the i9-11900K has an MSRP of US$539, an M1 Mac mini with 8 GB RAM and 256 GB storage costs from US$699.

There has been a supposed leak about the Sony Xperia 1 III and its specs that will surprise and please fans of the brand. Apparently, the Xperia 1 III will boast the kind of RAM firepower that phones such as the Asus ROG Phone 5, Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra, and Xiaomi Mi 10 Ultra have previously wielded.

Realme has made its first ever 108MP camera phone official as of March 24, 2021. The high-end sensor is joined by specs that are not nearly so new to the brand in the 8 Pro, however. Its Snapdragon 720G SoC is joined by up to 8GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage, and is kept on with a 4,500mAh battery with slower charging compared to the 7 Pro.

With specs that make it look ancient, such as eMMC storage and a 2/5 MP pair of cameras, the PinePhone Beta Edition is exactly what its name says. Priced at US$150 (2/32 GB) or US$200 (3/64 GB and a USB-C docking bar), the PinePhone Beta Edition only comes with 30 days of warranty and it isn't just another smartphone.

The fifth beta version of macOS 11.3 supposedly contains hints about the direction of the iMac, Apple's all-in-one desktop computer series. So far, references to two new iMacs have been found, both presumably running Apple Silicon ARM SoCs. Other exciting upgrades are due this year too, including a redesign for the series.

Looks like Intel does not really want to sever all ties with Apple, even after denigrating the new M1-powered Macs in its quite aggressive ad campaign released last week. With the introduction of its IDM 2.0 strategic plan that includes a Foundry Service program for fabless companies in the U.S. and Europe, Intel hopes to regain Apple's trust by offering to produce future ARM-based M processors. It remains to be seen how Intel is going to match TSMC's 3 nm and 2 nm nodes.

It has been reported that the upcoming Apple iPad Pro refresh might feature A14X chips that can offer performance on a similar level as the M1 silicon. The information in regard to the A14X SoC has derived from code for iOS 14.5, and there are also four codenames so far associated with the upcoming 11-inch and 12.9-inch 2021 iPad Pro models.

It appears Apple has been further reducing its current iMac offerings by removing two storage configurations from the purchase options. While this could indicate an upcoming unveiling of an iMac range featuring M-series Apple Silicon, the continuing worldwide chip shortage could force further hardware delays.

The CutiePi, a Raspberry Pi-based tablet, has been upgraded with more powerful internals. The developer has made other changes too, although the display remains unchanged. The new CutiePi is available to pre-order for US$199 and will begin shipping in July 2021.

OnePlus launched the OnePlus 9 and OnePlus 9 Pro hours ago. Completing the OnePlus 9 series, however, is the OnePlus 9R, a performance-oriented, bang-for-buck device exclusive to the Indian market.

A new size rumor about the potential Xiaomi Mi Pad 5 has once again demonstrated the Chinese OEM’s fondness for Apple products. It also seems that the iPad Pro mimic might be available sooner than expected, but it’s unlikely the Mi Pad 5 will get the sort of price tag that Xiaomi originally became noted for.

Qualcomm is rumoured to be developing a new high-end SoC for laptops this year, and someone may have already benchmarked it on Geekbench. The so-called Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 offers a huge performance leap over its predecessor and the Microsoft SQ2, with scores that rival the Core i7-1065G7 and Core i7-1165G7. The Apple M1 has the Snapdragon 8cx Gen 3 well beaten, though.

The latest market research indicates that Samsung sold 3 times more Galaxy S21 units in January 2021 compared to S20 phones for the same month of 2020 in the US. This may be due to the lower prices of the newer flagships in this market compared to their predecessors. The series' sales may have dropped off gradually since their launch; however, the release of the S21 FE could jump-start them again.

"Rugged" phones from OEMs such as DOOGEE are often sold via platforms such as AliExpress. However, this company has now announced that it is also now selling its S59 Pro on Amazon (in the US and the UK). This IP68/IP69K/MIL-STD-810G device has one of the largest batteries on the Android market, which powers on-board speakers rated for up to 2W of audio power.

OnePlus released the OnePlus Nord N10 5G towards the end of last year, and the company is now set to deliver a successor. Expectant fans may be disappointed, however, as information about the upcoming mid-range devices paints an image of a mere incremental upgrade, at least in terms of design.

Motorola is now rumored to have a phone called the Moto G20 in the works. It seems the OEM has made some unusual choices for this device, as its SoC comes not from Qualcomm, or even MediaTek, but from Unisoc instead. According to a new Geekbench leak, it is an octa-core chipset clocked at 2.0GHz.

The upcoming Black Shark 4 Pro has been crowned the new smartphone audio champion in DXOMARK’s rankings, pushing the Xiaomi Mi 10S into second place. The Black Shark 4 Pro impressed with its clear playback and excellent trio of microphones. The gaming smartphone with Snapdragon 888 and 144 Hz AMOLED will be launched on March 23.

March seems to be the month of Android flagships thus far; however, iQOO's latest launch announcement might be for a more affordable device. The Z3 is slated to debut with a mid-tier processor, although whether it will come from MediaTek or Qualcomm is not clear at this point. However, all rumors do agree it will have 5G, not to mention fast 55W charging.

Asus' new mobile-gaming flagship device, the ROG Phone 5, recently earned a shelving of shame following a catastrophic end to its round of JerryRigEverything's popular durability tests. This failure was thought to be due to a weak point caused by a secondary USB type C port found on one side; however, the ROG Phone 3 also had one, and proved much more robust. A teardown may reveal what else is going on with this new phone.

Huawei's supply chain issues have reportedly led to shortages of its bespoke high-end mobile CPUs for 2021. However, this has not stopped new rumors that it will soon have a new variant of its flagship Kirin 9000 SoC manufactured. Called the 9000L, it is painted as a throttled and cut-down version of the more premium processor.

A previous link hinted at an upcoming Motorola phone that, despite having otherwise affordable-class specs, has a 108MP Samsung ISOCELL HM2 sensor. Now, a new tip asserts that it will be called the Moto G60 at launch, and has some other potential advantages, not the least of which is a large 6,000mAh battery.

NUVIA's CPU technology will be integrated in many upcoming Qualcomm products, including ultraportable laptop processors, smartphone chips, digital cockpits, AI-assisted driving, extended reality and infrastructure networking solutions.

According to industry observers, it will be the redesigned iMac and not the MacBook Pro 16 that will truly be able to unlock the full potential of an expected M1X Apple Silicon. Even with an updated cooling solution, thermal restrictions will prevent the MacBook Pro 16 from hitting the performance heights of a larger M1X iMac device.

A new case for the Raspberry Pi has been successfully funded on Kickstarter, and it comes with almost 200 RGB LEDs built-in. The LumiCube should be simple for Raspberry Pi beginners to realise and includes an IPS display, among other features.

OnLogic has announced the One Tough Pi, an industrial case that transforms the Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 into a mini-PC. The One Tough Pi runs silently and brings dual Gigabit Ethernet to the single-board computer.

SoftBank has announced that it has set up a new 5G service in Japan. It is based on mmWave technology as opposed to sub-6GHz, which, according to its owner, brings the potential for higher speeds at reduced costs for carriers. The new system is made using Qualcomm hardware, and will support phones with the same OEM's SoCs.

A device called the "HMD Global Nokia X20" has popped up on Geekbench 5, detected as running on a Snapdragon 480 processor. This SoC is aimed at affordable new 5G phones, suggesting that this putative X20 will fall into this tier on launch. Its new leak also suggests it has 6GB of RAM and runs Android 11.

The new device sports a 10.1" HD display, an octa-core 2.3 GHz processor, and 32 GB of expandable storage. The tablet runs Android with plenty of Barnes & Noble apps pre-installed. However, the tablet looks very similar to the Lenovo Tab M10 Plus in practically every regard.

Intel has put up a website that details the benefits of opting for a laptop with a 11th gen Tiger Lake processor over Apple M1-powered MacBooks. The content of the website looks like Intel is focusing on the non-processor side of things for comparison. The odd benchmark or two that was highlighted is not available natively for the M1, which raises doubts over Intel's new marketing strategy.

Rumors concerning the possible unveiling and pricing strategy for numerous Apple Mac devices have surfaced. It has been alleged that a MacBook Pro 16 with 12-core M1X Apple Silicon will be joined by a redesigned mini-LED MacBook Pro 14 and mysterious ARM-based MacBook Air in being unveiled at some point in the fourth quarter of this year.

An affordable entry into Samsung's Galaxy? While that sounds good, the Galaxy A02s cut some corners in many places - in so many that it is hardly acceptable anymore.

Xiaomi's Black Shark premium gaming brand has announced that its new, Snapdragon 888-powered flagship is to launch on March 23, 2021 in China. The 4 is slated to have improved, "360-degree, 3D" cooling, triple rear cameras and the shoulder buttons from its 3 Pro forebear. The 2 phones are also likely to have very different designs.

Motorola is now said to have a phone with the new 108MP Samsung ISOCELL HM2 sensor on-board. Furthermore, the device is rumored to be powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 732 SoC and up to 6GB of RAM, which might bring the high-end camera spec to a very affordable tier in the near future. It might launch in India soon.

Realme has officially announced that its first phone with the MediaTek Dimensity 1200 flagship processor will be the GT Neo, and that it will debut at the end of March 2021. The OEM has yet to tease any more of its specs, although it is possible it will launch with a curved screen and a 4,400mAh battery.

Apple is currently transitioning from Intel processors to in-house chipsets based on the ARM architecture. The company has already moved three products over to Apple Silicon, and now Xcode has essentially confirmed that the iMac could soon follow suit. Rumour has it that the ARM-based iMac will feature a redesign too.

The Redmi Smart TV X50, X55 and X65 have been unleashed onto the Indian market. Their 4K LED panels are enhanced with MEMC, HDR10+, HLG, and Dolby Vision. The series also features dual 15W speakers, and will start at INR 32,999 (~US$455) on their March 26, 2021 release.

Leaker Ishan Agarwal has managed to get his hands on the specifications of the eagerly anticipated OnePlus Watch. The device looks set to compete with devices like the Samsung Galaxy Watch range with features including blood oxygen level monitoring and sleep monitoring.

Despite numerous rumors that Samsung could be set to axe the Galaxy Note line in 2021, the company has said that the Galaxy Note will live on. However, due to the global semiconductor shortage due to unprecedented demand for electronic goods in response to the pandemic, Samsung appears poised to skip the Galaxy Note in this year.

Realme's newest performance-oriented smartphone, the Realme GT, may not be quite as impressive as thought. Earning an AnTuTu score that shows a tangible performance advantage over other Snapdragon 888-powered flagships, it appears the Realme GT only manages to hit such numbers via unscrupulous means.

RedMagic has confirmed that its latest 6 and 6 Pro Android gaming flagship phones are to be released globally, bringing their new 165Hz AMOLED displays and Snapdragon 888 processors with them. However, it seems that the 6 Pro may not pack the ultra-fast 120W charging system it had when launched in China.

The Xiaomi Mi A3 is now receiving a new update. The OTA delivers the March security update and manages not to include any bugs—a thankful achievement considering Xiaomi's track record with Android One updates. It's also being sent out globally at the moment.

The Apple M1 processor has been placed at the top of PassMark’s latest single-thread performance chart for laptop chips, despite its average CPU Mark and single-thread rating having fallen slightly. This puts the hybrid M1 Apple Silicon, which is found in laptops and desktops, ahead of strong rivals such as the Ryzen 9 5900HX and Ryzen 9 5980HS.

The Samsung Galaxy A32 is one of the few 5G smartphones that uses a flicker-free LC display. This might have some drawbacks, but it's also a concession made to customers who have problems with OLEDs.

The list of Android flagship phones with the latest Snapdragon 888 SoC is slowly yet steadily growing, although not all of them are available globally. New leaks suggest the Vivo X60 Pro Plus, one such premium device launched in partnership with Zeiss, will make it to international shores soon.