Software

Google had included Nokia on its list of OEMs enrolled in its Android 13 Developer Preview Program, which means it has devices eligible for the OS' Beta 1 and later versions from now. However, the HMD Global brand has now revealed that this applies to only 1 phone thus far: the 2021 X20.

PC gaming is expensive, so it's a good thing marketplaces like Steam always have some sort of sale going on. It's not easy to pick when the sales are so short, so instead of buying a game on a whim, have a look at these three great choices you can get for little more than a fancy coffee.

Google has officially debuted the Pixel 6a, albeit with pricing in US dollars (US$) only, leaving consumers in additional countries where the new mid-range smartphone might also become available wondering how much they have to pay for one. The Mountain View giant has now released that information in currencies such as euros, yen and Australian dollars.

Unihertz has just announced the latest in its line of Android phones with many more physical buttons than usual. The OEM asserts that this one, the Titan Slim, is its thinnest such device yet. It has launched via Kickstarter, where it has already smashed its funding goal.

Currently, the Galaxy Watch4 series fly the flag for Wear OS 3, which will also be coming to the Pixel Watch later this year. While Google's first smartwatch is not due until the autumn, Samsung has confirmed that the Galaxy Watch4 and Galaxy Watch4 Classic will be receiving a long-awaited Wear OS feature this summer instead.

Garmin has released substantial software updates to the Epix 2 and Fenix 7 series. Distributed as software version 8.18, the updates are available to all Epix 2 and Fenix 7 series owners, not just those who participate in Garmin's public beta program.

The Nothing Phone (1) has not launched yet, but you can now try out its launcher software on most Android smartphones. Initially released to the Pixel 6 and the Galaxy S22 series, Nothing Launcher is now available on any smartphone running Android 11 or newer.

Google has announced a second-gen Wallet in the course of its I/O 2022 keynote. This app is slated to support more than just payments this time around. It will also support the Mountain View giant's growing capacity to turn mobile devices into digital ID containers. The Wallet Android app is coming to users in 40 countries soon.

Vivo has just confirmed rumors that it will launch new members of its mid-range S series. These smartphones are now slated to launch with the brand's OriginOS Android skin and much more. They include Sony main cameras with "exclusive" adjustments, high-end processors and the same 80W charging technology as the brand's 2022 flagships.

The OnePlus Watch is available for free with the purchase of a new 10 Pro Android flagship smartphone. However, this offer is a flash sale in effect for one day (May 11, 2022) only, and seems to be valid in the US and Canada only. Then again, it might prove a good enough deal for those who can get it.

The iPod Touch is the latest version of Apple's non-cellular, music-playback-focused mobile devices. Now, in the fifteenth year following its original launch, the Cupertino giant has finally discontinued its Home Button-enabled media player. It will still be available to buy, albeit only as long as its remaining stock lasts.

Huawei has started distributing firmware version 11.0.8.26 to the Watch GT 2 Pro in Europe. Firmware version 11.0.8.26 has a long changelog and is nearly a 100 MB download. Accordingly, Huawei has included numerous changes and optimisations, such as adding Petal Maps as a pre-installed Maps app.

GoPro has announced its financial performance figures for the first quarter of 2022 (1Q2022), which features highlights such as revenues of US$217 million. The action-cam brand also found that its subscriber numbers are still rising, and that it is still sitting on hundreds of millions in cash.

As promised, the 1MORE EVO TWS earbuds are now available with SGS-certified adaptive ANC, support for the LDAC codec that delivers an excellent level of acoustic detail, SoundID personalized sound, wireless charging for the case, and a battery life of up to 28 hours (20 hours with ANC enabled). The price tag reads US$169.99.

AMD detailed how constant improvements to Radeon Software has resulted in tangible performance gains in popular games. During the presentation, AMD also briefly touched upon FSR 2.0 and said Deathloop will be the first major title to enable FSR 2.0 support on May 12 with other popular titles to soon follow suit.

Motorola has just made the vanilla variant of its Edge 30 Android flagship series official in April 2022 for the European market. Now, the OEM has announced that it will also become available in India shortly, asserting that it will be the thinnest 5G phone in that country on its launch via partners such as Flipkart.

Windows 11 has been officially available for half a year now. Many PC users worldwide do not need to do much to acquire this upgrade; however, for those somehow in more difficulty, physical copies have recently been spotted as another options. Therefore, anyone who has ever wanted the latest stable version of Microsoft's omnipresent OS in a box can spend their money on one now.

Youtuber Ivan Novozhilov recently shared WIP footage of 2Unreal4Underground, a complete fan remake of Need For Speed Underground 2. The Unreal 4-powered remake is a massive step up in visual quality from the sixth-gen classic. Beyond visuals, Novozhilov's remake will also attempt to tweak and enhance gameplay elements.

Mark Zuckerberg has officially introduced one of WhatsApp's most anticipated pending features of some time: reactions. Users can thus append emojis to a given message under the service's latest update. The latest version also contains other potentially valuable features such as an increased attachment file-size limit.

Carl Pei's new tech company Nothing touts its upcoming inaugural smartphone as one that will bring some much-needed novelty and innovation back to the Android market. Those claims might prove materially ironic should a complete specs breakdown painting a distinctly middle-of-the-road picture of the phone (1) turn out to be accurate. Then again, the source of these details could be described as spurious at best.

Embracer Group has confirmed that it plans to acquire the IP of a plethora of games, Tomb Raider and Deus Ex included, not to mention the relevant studios, in a deal worth US$300 million to Square Enix. These proceeds are slated to become sunk into the latter's new-found enthusiasm for areas such as "blockchain, AI, and the cloud".

The latest update to AltStore, the alternative app store for iOS, brings a bevy of new changes, including new trusted sources, just-in-time compilation, and bug fixes. The update is a boon for retro gamers who want an easy way to install emulators on their iDevice.

Samsung has started distributing a new update to the Galaxy Watch4 series, including the Galaxy Watch4 Classic. Following on from last month's update, Samsung has brought the Galaxy Watch4 series onto the May 1 security patch. Still, the latest update is approximately a 100 MB file, which is downloadable through the Galaxy Wearable app.

Microsoft has announced a new feature for Windows 11 called controller bar. Dubbed a preview of an upcoming revised Xbox Game Bar, the new controller bar does not appear to be exclusive to Xbox Controllers. Currently, the new controller bar is exclusive to recent Windows Insider Preview Builds from the Dev and Beta Channels.

Samsung has confirmed that it will be bringing Galaxy S22 camera features to many other Galaxy handsets. The list includes the Galaxy Z Fold3 and Galaxy Z Flip3, but also extends back to the Galaxy Note20 and Galaxy S20 series.

Amazfit is currently thought to have a second generation of the T-Rex Pro, a smartwatch overtly pitched at the outdoors-type consumer, ready to launch soon. However, the Zepp Health brand is also now said to have another wearable of the same category in the works, although this one is tipped to be much more premium, featuring a titanium case and improved water-resistance along with a high-brightness AMOLED display.

Motorola has announced a second generation of its Revou-series smart TVs for the Indian market. The inaugural variant was 4K/UHD and ran Android 10 out of the box; however, its line has now expanded to include HD and FHD options. They are all based on updated software, and have a 4K/UHD flagship with "4D Sound".

Google has started distributing new updates to the Pixel 3a through Pixel 6 series. Dubbed the May 2022 update, the new software brings all eligible Pixel smartphones onto SP2A.220505.002, at least for unlocked handsets. The May 2022 makes a few changes across the Pixel lineup, including one specific to the Pixel 6 and the Pixel 6 Pro.

Body temperature measurement, tracking or both are among the most hotly-discussed potential features for next-gen smartwatches. However, according to a respected security analyst, OEMs are having perhaps more trouble perfecting it than they may have imagined, even major players such as Apple. Currently, it is thought that more work is required to incorporate it into its series-8 Watch.

The ID. Buzz is the long-awaited conversion of Volkswagen's iconic minibus to a 2022 electric vehicle. However, the auto OEM has now hinted that it could also be something else in the future. It consists of something that looks like a Buzz from the front and a pick-up truck from the back. This, then, could be a nod to a new upcoming genre of VW e-vehicle.

The VAVA Chroma triple-laser projector became the most-funded product on Indiegogo in 2021. Now, it is available as a retail unit via its brand's own website. Alternatively, it will be available through Best Buy in some markets. The device is rated to throw an image of up to 150 inches for a "cinematic experience".

A GSMArena correspondent has just devoted an entire online article to some alleged display issues evinced by their unit of OnePlus' 2022 flagship smartphone, the 10 Pro. The page may document some severe issues the device has while scrolling through apps such as Instagram. Is this an unfortunate side-effect of one of the 10 Pro's most cutting-edge features?

Wemax' success with its ~1-inch high Go portable projector allowed the brand to take it off Indiegogo and onto 'normal' sales channels earlier in 2022. Now, it has been able to do the same with the device's Advanced Edition. This model is the one capable of the series' highest-end specs, which include an estimated max brightness of 600 ANSI lumens.

The unofficial Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time PC port recently received support for a 60 FPS framerate update, significantly improving the gameplay experience from the N64 original. The port doesn't use reverse-engineered source code, unlike Super Mario 64, making it less likely to run afoul of legal challenges.

Amazfit has announced a new software updated for its latest GTR 3/3 Pro and GTS 3 smartwatches. It functions to fix some pre-existing bugs in all 3 devices - however, in the case of the highest-end GTR 3 Pro, it also enables the user to set it to send SMS messages by itself in response to incoming calls or other events such as WhatsApp messages.

Carl Pei's nascent OEM, Nothing, has released something new for the first time in over a month. However, it amounts to not much more than a new Google Play Store link to the custom launcher for its in-house Android skin. It may offer users of devices such as those of the Samsung Galaxy S22 or Pixel 6 lines a taste of what they should expect out of the box should they switch to a new Nothing phone (1) in the future.

With Android 13 Beta 1 rolling out to eligible developers ahead of its “platform stability” phase this June, many stock Android enthusiasts cannot wait to learn what is new in the latest build. Let’s take a closer look at what to expect from Android 13 when it’s released to the public later this year.

Realme has rounded its major Indian product event of today (April 28, 2022) with its latest smart TV. This new X Full HD variants boast Dolby Atmos-tuned stereo speakers and support Bluetooth 5 and 5GHz Wi-Fi and come in 2 sizes. They will join the ~US$300 price-bracket on their release to their first market.

UGREEN has announced a new addition to the HiTune line of truly-wireless (TWS) earbuds. The T3s are placed on the more budget and AirPod-mimicking end of this spectrum - although they also feature active noise cancellation (ANC) for the first time. They also support the Bluetooth 5.2 standard and up to 24 hours of battery life.

The OnePlus Nord Buds have launched in India with a more original take on the typical AirPod-clone form-factor. They contain large "titanium" dynamic drivers, feature IP55 ingress-protection and have an estimated 30 hours of battery life. On the other hand, there is no active noise cancellation (ANC) or wireless charging here.

OnePlus has made the Lite version of the Nord CE 2 official. The Android smartphone has launched with a 120Hz display, although it is LCD rather than AMOLED as in higher-end phones of this brand. Then again, specs such as these knock its price down to well under US$300.

Xiaomi has rounded its major Indian product launch of today (April 27, 2022) with the Pad 5. The OEM touts its new Android tablet as a way to do many aspects of life, content consumption, note-taking and gaming included. The 2.5K+ display slate will be released to its new region in May 2022.

1More has now set a date for the launch of its next TWS earbuds, which, as the OEM claims, will challenge enthusiast-grade wired headphones for audio quality. The EVO buds are touted to debut with an upgraded internal design for highly detailed music playback, powerful active noise cancellation (ANC) and LDAC support later in 2022.

The Nokia G21 has the first 90Hz screen of its line, and is also now official on the Indian market. The HMD Global brand touts it as a smartphone with a battery that can last days at a time, as well as one in which official Android update support outdoes that of its competitors.

Google has now officially confirmed that Android 13 has moved along the path to a full release to the point at which its first public beta is now available. Those who own eligible Pixel-series devices can install it to enhance the level of control they have over how apps use media files, if not much else at this point.

Fitbit has begun rolling out an update that adds atrial fibrillation notifications for nine of its recent fitness trackers and smartwatches. While Fitbit has received approval from the FDA to roll out the feature, it is only available in the US, at least for the time being.

The Vivo X80 series of Android smartphones is now official, which means their V1 Plus (or V1+) image signal processor (ISP) is as well. This chipset is exclusive to the new devices, and is rated to augment some aspects of their battery-saving and gaming functions as well as those of their new Zeiss-tuned rear cameras.

Vivo has announced the S15e as a perhaps more affordable alternative to the new X80 mobile-photography flagship smartphones today (April 25, 2022). It has a modern design, although it lags behind a bit in terms of display refresh rate and Android version out of the box. This panel is driven by a lesser-spotted Exynos processor from Samsung.

Huawei has confirmed that the Watch GT 3 Pro will make its debut soon. The OEM is also now teasing the wearable as a new deep-sea diving companion thanks to improved, apparently independently-verified ingress protection. The spec may make the upcoming accessory much more water-tight than its average counterpart.

OPPO has launched the K10 series today (April 24, 2022). The 2 smartphones involved have introduced an unusual list of world-firsts, including the debut of the Dimensity 8000-MAX processor in the vanilla model. The new Android 12 devices start for less than US$310.