Chinese Tech

Some new images of the Huawei TalkBand B6 have been leaked, with the upcoming wearable shown off in four different color variants. The fitness tracker/Bluetooth headset looks particularly elegant in stainless steel. The TalkBand B6 is expected to feature a Kirin A1 chipset for smart operations and a blood oxygen monitor.

Realme has been hyping a new line of smartphones that it may launch at IFA 2020 Special Edition. An executive from this brand has now confirmed that it is to be called the V series, and that the V5 will be its inaugural release. This phone will have a rectangular rear camera, the main sensor of which is thought to be 48MP in resolution.

OnePlus may be working on a OnePlus 8T and 8T Pro mid-year refresh. The first clues for this come from a code snippet pertaining to the latest version of the OnePlus Camera app, which includes references to a 64 MP shooting mode. The code indicates that the 64 MP mode can capture highly detailed shots in well-lit scenes.

The Poco F2 Pro is now receiving the official MIUI 12 update around the world. It's the global stable update and is rolling out to owners across Europe and Indonesia, with a specific build for Russian users. The Mi Note 10 is now also receiving the MIUI 12 update in China.

Xiaomi has launched MIUI for TV 3.0 software for its Mi TV range. The new overlay brings an enhanced user interface with it along with detailed animations for the menu and new operating modes, including a gamepad mode. MIUI for TV 3.0 is based on the Android TV operating system.

The Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro has received another update in India, but the device remains on Android 9.0 Pie and MIUI 11. In comparison, some Redmi Note 7 and Redmi Note 7S handsets have already been upgraded to Android 10 and MIUI 12. The degree of software support for the Redmi Note 7 Pro is in contrast to the Mi 9, which has now finished its upgrade to MIUI 12 across all regions.

The reliable tipster Digital Chat Station claims that Nubia has a refresh of its Red Magic gaming phone flagship in the works. Called the 5S, it will apparently be capable of GPU overclocking. This means that, even though it is slated to run on the Snapdragon 865, the user can make its Adreno 650 exceed standard clock speeds by an appreciable margin.

Oppo has released an animated trailer for a Wear OS device that will reportedly launch worldwide on July 31, 2020. It is most likely for its first-gen smartwatch, which has been released in China but runs a variant of ColorOS in that region. This device is Apple-esque in its design and has a Qualcomm processor for wearables.

The GW16 is another budget smartwatch, and one that looks surprisingly like the Huawei Watch GT 2. The device can be purchased for under US$25 and features a large touch IPS display, a thermometer, a heart rate monitor and is IP67 certified.

MIUI 12 has made its debut on the Mi 9 SE, Xiaomi's diminutive mid-range smartphone. The update is rolling out to handsets now amid claims that the Pocophone F1 could be the next device to receive Xiaomi's new OS upgrade following the recent rollout to the Redmi Note 8 Pro.

EMUI 10.1 may have introduced multiple features to Huawei's roster of devices, but there are reports of the OS update removing some functionality too. According to frustrated users, EMUI 10.1 has removed call recording and camera resolution options, although not all devices are affected.

While Intel is yet again postponing the launch of its 7 nm processors, Chinese chip makers like Phytium are rising with big dreams of providing decent competition for AMD in the next few years. Phytium currently specializes in server-grade CPUs with 64 cores, but, by the end of 2021, the Chinese company intends to ready 128-core server chips built on TSMC's 5 nm nodes, along with 14 nm desktop and embedded CPUs.

The OnePlus Nord is yet to start retailing in stores but has already received a couple of updates that improve camera functionality and bring the phone up to date with the latest Google Android security patches. Also, the Nord along with the OnePlus 8 series will be getting dual 4G+5G SIM support in a future OTA update.

The Realme X50 5G is finally available for purchase outside of China, but only in Thailand. It comes with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G SoC, 6.5-inch 120Hz screen, 4,200mAh battery, and a slightly different camera configuration compared to the Chinese version. The phone costs 12,990 THB (US$410) for the base variant with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage.

Xiaomi has announced that the MIUI 12 beta global stable update has started being pushed out for owners of the flagship Xiaomi Mi 10 Pro smartphone. The software, which is version V12.0.1.0.QJAMIXM, will allow randomly chosen Mi 10 Pro users to access the full delights of MIUI 12, including Super Wallpapers.

The Huawei TalkBand B6 wearable fitness tracker and Bluetooth headset combination has leaked in some live images and short video clips. The dual-function accessory looks to be a step up from the previous generation, with the TalkBand B6 bearing a larger display and utilizing a Kirin A1 processor.

Realme has released yet another mid-range smartphone for the Indian market. The Realme 6i comes with a 6.5-inch FHD screen clocked at 90Hz, a MediaTek Helio G90T SoC, a quad-camera array at the back, and a 4,300mAh that supports fast charging for 30W. All of this can be had for as little as INR 12,999 (US$173) starting July 31 on Flipkart and Realme's website.

The launch of the new OnePlus Buds means Xiaomi has to up its game in the TWS segment and it's done so spectacularly with the Haylou T16 TWS earbuds that offer active noise cancellation, 6 hours of playback, and wireless charging just for US$40.

Huawei's next smartwatch has appeared at the CCC, prompting speculation about its release. The so-called Mate Watch will succeed the popular Watch GT 2.

It’s a combination of the Redmi 10X, 10X Pro, and OPPO Reno3 5G with MediaTek Dimensity chips that rule the roost in AnTuTu’s midrange smartphone performance chart for the first half of this year. The Kirin 985 processor has made a decent showing in the table too, but it seems the midrange market in terms of performance is currently MediaTek’s domain.

Xiaomi has slashed the price of its Mi True Wireless Earphones 2 in India to counter the upcoming threat from the recently launched OnePlus Buds. The Xiaomi earphones are now priced at ₹3,999 (US$53), which should help the Mi True Wireless Earphones 2 take on the OnePlus Buds that have an advertised price of ₹4,990 (US$67).

The Redmi Note 9 Pro and Redmi Note 9S are two sides of a coin, and both phones are currently receiving new updates in different regions. Sadly, the updates don't bring MIUI 12 as most owners would expect, but there's official confirmation that a rollout isn't far off.

AnTuTu has published its flagship smartphone performance chart covering the first half of 2020, and it is the OPPO Find X2 Pro and Find X2 devices that claim the top two spots. Every phone in the top 10 features a Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 SoC and the only non-Chinese device is the Samsung Galaxy S20+ 5G in 10th place.

Realme has been sharing some impressive statistics with its followers on social media. Not only has the Chinese company managed to hit a figure of 40 million smartphone users worldwide in just over two years of existence but the brand has also been celebrating sales of 150,000 Realme C11 smartphones in 120 seconds.

The mysterious Xiaomi Redmi K30 Ultra smartphone has turned up again, this time in a series of images from the TENAA agency. The phone, which is possibly codenamed “cezanne” and also once rumored to be a Redmi K40 device, still hasn’t been officially named by Xiaomi. The Redmi K30 Ultra may feature a MediaTek Dimensity 1000+ chipset.

Lenovo has announced its first gaming phone, which is now officially the Lenovo Legion Phone Duel. It is powered by the refreshed Snapdragon 865+ (or Plus) SoC, and has 12 or 16GB of RAM. It is also now confirmed to have the unique landscape-oriented pop-up rear camera set-up shown in numerous leaks, and has a 64MP dual main camera.

Xiaomi has released a new update to the Mi A3, its third OS update in under two weeks. While the new build supposedly improves system stability and reduces lag, some people are unhappy with how Xiaomi's apparent inability to address outstanding bugs.

The latest figures on the Indian hearables (or personal audio accessories with smart features) market show that Realme has rocketed into its top 5 brands. This success is particularly impressive as it only started selling products in this category in December 2019. Nevertheless, it now has more of a share than Sony or Xiaomi in that market.

Xiaomi has revealed that the giant 98-inch Redmi Smart TV Max is now in a pre-sale phase again as clearly stocks had dwindled after the amazing sales successes the Chinese OEM had with the huge device. The Redmi Max 98 is currently priced at 19,999 yuan (US$2,855), which is very reasonable for a 98-inch 4K smart TV with MEMC technology.

The Redmi K30 Pro Zoom Edition is a cheaper alternative for those with their sights on the Mi 10 Pro, and it performs as expected. The Redmi flagship's cameras have now been tested by DxOMark and found to perform better than phones like the iPhone 11 Pro Max and Galaxy S20+.

A potential Poco C3 smartphone has been spotted in Bluetooth certification. The model number offered in the documents gives the impression the Poco C3 will be, unsurprisingly, a rebranded Redmi device, which in this case is likely the Redmi 9C. With this, the sunny days of the semi-original Xiaomi Pocophone F1 seem to be rapidly fading further into the past.

The Redmi Note 9 is barely three months old but rumors of the Redmi Note 10 have already surfaced. The recent leak shows the upcoming Xiaomi mid-range phone with the MediaTek Dimensity 820—an SoC that appears to outperform Qualcomm's much-lauded Snapdragon 765G—and plenty of RAM.

The MIUI 12 update for the Redmi Note 8 Pro is being released globally after spending quite some in a Phase 2 beta test program. The update will be initially available for Mi Pilot testers but will be seeded to most other devices by the end of this month. Also, Xiaomi has confirmed that the Mi 6 will not be getting either Android 10 or MIUI 12.

Xiaomi is continuing its MIUI 12 rollout by sending out new updates to the Redmi Note 9 and Mi 9T. This is an early MIUI 12 build for the Redmi Note 9—and the Redmi 10X 4G—carries the build number "MIUI V12.0.3.0.QJOCNXM".

OnePlus has announced that its latest Nord smartphone will be available in India for a starting price of ₹24,999 from August 4. OnePlus Nord sees the company refocusing on affordable flagships, but it is not without competition owing to the many Snapdragon 765G-powered already in the market. Alongside the Nord phones, the company also announced the OnePlus Buds in-ear headphones for a price of ₹4,990 (US$67).

The OnePlus Nord may be a cheap smartphone even by the standards of OnePlus, but there is a way to get the company's new mid-range smartphone for even less than its £379 and €399 starting price. Until August 4, you can take up to 7.5% off the OnePlus Nord, bringing its price down to £349 or €369 depending on where you live.

The OnePlus Nord is finally here, and it is the mid-range smartphone to beat in 2020. A device with a 90 Hz AMOLED panel, 8 GB of RAM, 128 GB of storage, six cameras, 30 W fast charging and a large battery for £379 or €399 represents excellent value for money, but US consumers will miss out for the time being.

The stable MIUI 12 update has arrived for the Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 and Redmi Note 7S. Available to download now, the update is arriving as an over-the-air (OTA) upgrade and follows the Android 10 update for Indian handsets. Equivalent MIUI 12 updates have recently reached other devices like the Mi 10, Redmi K20 and Redmi K20 Pro too.

Xiaomi has started upgrading the Mi 10 and Mi 10 Lite to MIUI 12 on the European and Global branches of MIUI. The move effectively commences Round 2 of the company's MIUI 12 release schedule. Available for the global and EU editions of the devices respectively, the updates are rolling out to handsets now.

There are no update plans for the Mi Mix 3 5G, it has emerged. Contradicting Xiaomi Customer Support, the 5G edition of the Mi Mix 3 is still yet to receive any form of OS upgrade from Android 9.0 Pie or MIUI 10.

A recent Xiaomi patent for a smartphone with a 108 MP super camera and wraparound display has been brought to life in a series of renders and a beautiful concept video. It has been speculated the patent could be for the Xiaomi Mi Mix 4, while an appropriate model name of "Xiaomi Mi Mix Alpha Pro" has also been put forward for the bonkers device.

Xiaomi has announced two new curved gaming monitors. Available in 29-inch and 34-inch screen sizes, both have a curvature of 1500R and support picture in picture. The larger of the two is a 1440p and 100 Hz panel. Xiaomi has announced a new electric standing desk for gamers, too.

Xiaomi’s MIUI 12 stable update should be rolled out to the second batch of smartphones mentioned in the company’s roadmap before the end of July. This news pertains to owners of devices such as the Xiaomi Mi Mix 3, Xiaomi Mi 9 SE, and Redmi Note 7 Pro in China for the moment, although a global rollout can be expected in the near future.

Honor has announced its first Wi-Fi 6 Plus router, the Honor Router 3. The Router 3 features one WAN port, three Gigabit LAN ports and measures 245 x 159.2 x 39.7 mm. The Honor Router 3 is available for €79.90 in the Eurozone and £79.99 in the UK.

The Xiaomi Mi Band 4C has been spotted appearing on Amazon Spain, where the budget fitness tracker can be bought for a very reasonable €19.99 (US$23/£18). While the Chinese OEM is busy releasing wearables in Europe, it looks like Xiaomi might be also planning on adding some new Mi TVs to its range in India.

Xiaomi has announced the new Mijia Projector 2 Pro device, which is priced at 4,599 yuan (US$658). The projector is able to cast a screen of up to a maximum of 200 inches, and it features a brightness level of up to 1,300 ANSI Lumens. HDR10+ support is onboard and the Xiaomi Mijia Projector 2 Pro also implements ToF technology.

A teaser on Realme's official Weibo handle indicates that the company is working on a new phone series. The devices will likely come with pill-shaped camera cutouts and will be 5G-ready. Realme might unveil the devices at IFA Berlin.

Features and some specs of the Xiaomi Mi 10 Pro+ (Super Cup) smartphone may have been teased by Xiaomi’s CEO Lei Jun. The executive asked his followers what features are important for a flagship nowadays, with some taking his post as a subtle leak of some of the features for the rumored Mi 10 Pro+ device.