Motorola pushing Oreo update to X4, Z Play, Z2 Play, G5, G5S in Australia and New Zealand

The Lenovo-owned smartphone maker is now rolling out the Oreo update for several Motorola handsets in Australia and New Zealand. The update will bring new Android Oreo features which Motorola has outlined below. Autofill your longs to favorite apps Improved performance and smart text selection Picture-in-picture gives you a floating window letting you do more at the same time (certain Google apps) Notification dots on your apps to alert you of something new Google Play protect to keep you safe from malicious apps Optimized battery life New Emojis - fully redesigned...

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Oppo to expand to European markets

Oppo has confirmed to WinFuture that the company is indeed planning to begin selling smartphone in Western Europe. Oppo is a Chinese smartphone company, one that ships the most units in its home market of China, as well as in India. There have always been Oppo phones available all over Europe, but on more of an unofficial import method. Chinese media had reported that Tony Chen, Oppo CEO, stated that the Qualcomm was going to announce Oppo would become active internationally (in new markets). There was a brief time when Oppo did sell some of its phones in Europe, it announced some of the...

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Nougat finally becomes the most popular Android version just as Oreo passes 1% of the market

Google has published its monthly analysis of Android market share today, and we have some big news. For the first time in history, the most used version of the OS is now Nougat - which launched in August of 2016, almost 18 months ago. It takes the crown from Marshmallow, in fact its predecessor. Nougat is now at 28.5% of the pie (up from 26.4%), while Marshmallow dropped to 28.1% (from 28.6% last month). Lollipop completes the podium, still commanding 24.6% of the market at this time. While all the older versions of the OS lost market share, Oreo is still gaining. At the same...

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Broadcom ups its bid for Qualcomm to $82 per share, $121 billion in total

Last November Qualcomm received an unsolicited takeover offer from Broadcom. The latter company offered $70 per Qualcomm share, at the time a 33% premium over the stock market value. A few days later, Qualcomm's board promptly rejected the acquisition, on the grounds that Broadcom's offer "dramatically undervalues" the company. Broadcom hasn't given up on the prospect of owning Qualcomm, though, and today it's raised its hostile takeover bid to $82 per share, adding up to a total of $121 billion (up from $105 billion initially). Broadcom says this offer is its "best and final". The...

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Huawei Mate 10 Pro goes on pre-order in the US with $150 gift card

Despite its much publicized failure to have it offered by carriers, Huawei is still launching the Mate 10 Pro in the US, albeit only in unlocked form. Starting today you can pre-order the handset from Amazon, Best Buy, Newegg, and B&H. It should also be available in Microsoft stores. The Mate 10 Pro is priced at $799, but to sweeten the deal you will receive a $150 gift card which you can use at the retailer you chose to purchase the phone from. This offer is only available to those who pre-order. The device will start shipping on February 18, so to get that gift card you will need to pull...

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Xiaomi Redmi Note 5A (Y1) review

This one is the only Note in the fifth Redmi generation but it's not the Note 5 that had everyone drooling. In fact, what should've been the Note 5 is now known as the 5 Plus, which we recently reviewed. The Redmi 5 proper also got its share of our homepage. It's now the Redmi Note 5A's turn, an entry-level phablet with a high-res selfie camera but no wide screen for a change. Cheaper, simpler, ordinary.

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Pixel 2 Visual Core enabled for all apps with February update

Google has started rolling out the February update, which enables the Pixel Visual Core on the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL. This will allow third party developers of applications that access the camera API to tap into the Visual Core hardware and access the HDR+ image processing feature that has been available in the main camera app since the beginning. Without HDR+ and with HDR+ on the Pixel Visual Core The Pixel Visual Core is a custom image processor on the Pixel 2 devices that does hardware acceleration of the various image processing algorithms, primarily the HDR+ effect, which...

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Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ in Lilac Purple get leaked press renders

Samsung will make the Galaxy S9 and S9+ official at a special event in Barcelona on February 25, and as we get ever closer to that date leaks about these two handsets are starting to pour in. Right now we can show you leaked press renders of both the S9 and the S9+ in Lilac Purple, an intriguing color version for the duo, which was hinted at in a video a few days ago. This is just one of four main hues that Samsung is preparing (there may be other limited editions as well). Expect to also see the S9 and S9+ in Midnight Black, Titanium Gray, and Coral Blue - though not all markets may get...

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Xiaomi Amazfit Bip smartwatch with 45 day battery goes global

Striking the best balance between "smarts" and traditional usability is kind of a perpetual struggle in the smartwatch realm. Most of us would love to have constant GPS and an LTE connection strapped to our wrist, but one that doesn't need to be recharged every 30 hours, or so. There is no one right approach here, but what the Amazfit Bip offers is rather uncommon. The Bip has been making the rounds for quite some time in Asian markets, but now the Xiaomi-owned company is finally setting it loose on the international scene, for the tantalizing price of $99. The Bip has a...

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Samsung Galaxy S9+ will allegedly use a 1/2.55" IMX345 sensor

From the back of a retail box, we know that the Galaxy S9 duo will bring back the variable aperture - the camera would be able to switch between f/1.5 and f/2.4. Behind that aperture will be a 12MP Dual Pixel image sensor and now we have a name. @MMDDJ_ claims that the Sony IMX345 will be used on the upcoming flagship. Measuring 1/2.55", it will be essentially the same size as the one in the Galaxy S8 and Note8. However information that leaked on Samsung.com suggests the new sensor will support much faster readout - fast enough for 480fps video. The IMX345 name was reported earlier...

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Users report issues with answering incoming calls on the iPhone X

While far removed from its humble stationary origins, smartphones should still be able to make and take calls. Apple's iPhone X seems to be making a mess of the latter as multiple people report they can't answer a call for several seconds. What happens is that the ringtone starts playing as soon as the phone is called, but the screen stays off for several seconds, preventing you from answering. Going by the "I have this question too" count on the support page, close to a thousand people are affected by this issue. People have tried resetting their phones and installing the latest...

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HTC U12 shows up in live photos

The HTC U12, the maker's next flagship, has just surfaced at a Taiwan 5G industry event showing off its LTE+ prowess. While no hardware details have been specified we can see that the phone has an 18:9 screen on the front with little bezel around it and that it's more curved than the HTC U11+. The HTC U12 will have a 6-inch 1440x2880px Super LCD6 on the front and will likely use the Snapdragon 845 with 6GB of RAM. Judging by its very recent predecessor, the HTC U12 will be IP68 water resistant, will have stereo speakers, a microSD card slot and a big battery. In the images below...

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UK banks block Bitcoin purchases with credit cards

Lloyds Banking Group which owns Halifax, Bank of Scotland, MBNA and Lloyds will block Bitcoin purchases with their credit cards. The restriction is applied because the financial institutions worry that their customers might borrow cash to invest in the cryptocurrency and might end up in debt. Bitcoin price jumped from $800 to over $18,000 in 12 months, as the public interest grew. The price is currently under $8,000, and banks are worried their customers might get caught up in the craze and end up maxing out their credit cards. The same decision was taken last week in the US. Bank...

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Honor device with dual cameras on both sides passes through the TENAA

A new Honor smartphone could be on the horizon, says the latest Chinese TENAA listing. The listing itself reveals only the LND-AL30's design and that it's made under the Huawei Honor sub brand. What we can see is that the phone has a metal back with a fingerprint scanner and dual camera. The front has an 18:9 screen, similarly to the Honor 7X. This could be the rumored Honor 7C, a watered-down version of the upper-midrange Honor 7X. Honor 7C Looking at the two inlays on the front we could assume that the phone has two selfie cameras, making for a total of 4...

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Limited edition OnePlus 5T Lava Red comes to Europe and the US

The Lava Red edition of the OnePlus 5T breaks up the monotony of black/silver/gold phones out there, but the company is doing a teasingly slow rollout. Well, Europeans and Americans will finally be able to get in on the action tomorrow. This is a limited edition, so it will be available only while supplies last. Sales start 10am GMT tomorrow (February 6) and the price is $560 / €560 / £500. If you order by February 8, shipping is free. OnePlus 5T in Lava Red arrives in Europe and the US This is for the OnePlus 5T with 8GB of RAM and 128GB storage. Yes, the limited edition...

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Xiaomi to announce Redmi 5 in India on February 14

Xiaomi is expected to announce the new Redmi 5 and the Redmi 5 Plus in India on Wednesday, February 14. We received a media invite for the event and the company also posted teasers on social media. The Redmi 5 is the successor to the popular Redmi 4. It switches to the now popular 18:9 aspect ratio display along with few other improvements such as a slightly faster processor and improved cameras. There is also a Redmi 5 Plus model that has a larger, higher resolution display with a larger battery. It is being said that the two phones will be rebranded as Redmi Note 5 and...

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Sony Xperia X and Xperia X Compact now receiving Android 8.0 Oreo

The X Performance was the first of the original X trio to get Oreo (back in November), but now the Sony Xperia X and Xperia X Compact have caught up. The update - build number 34.4.A.0.364 - brings Android 8.0.0 Oreo and the January 1 security patch. Sony Xperia X before and after the Oreo update It seems that both the Xperia X F5121 (global, single SIM) and F5122 (global, dual SIM) versions are receiving the update. The X Compact F5321 is also receiving the update. We don't have confirmation about the US version of the X or the Japanese variant of the X Compct.

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KGI: Intel could be the exclusive LTE modem supplier for 2018 iPhones

KGI Securities released the latest note to Apple investors with an accent over the deliveries of LTE modems in the 2018 iPhones. According to Ming-Chi Kuo, Apple is going to ditch the Qualcomm platforms for the latest Intel XMM 7560 that supports both GSM and CDMA. Apple cutting supply from the San Diego company and switching to Intel effectively means there could be one iPhone model that works with all four major US carriers - AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, and Sprint. The split is also a logical step for the two companies that are entangled in a bunch of lawsuits. Kuo added that...

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HTC working on a budget 18:9 handset codenamed Breeze

Like many other major players, we expect HTC to hold off on major announcements at MWC 2018, more specifically, the U12 flagship. Still that doesn't mean the Taiwanese manufacturer has put its smartphone efforts on hold altogether. A fresh new batch of insider info, courtesy of reliable leakster Evan Blass, describes a new entry-level HTC handset on its way to the market. This comes only days after another mysterious and still unannounced HTC phone was spotted in the GeekBench database. However, unlike the '2Q5W1', with its mid-range specs, this newly unearthed device, codenamed Breeze is...

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Xiaomi to announce Redmi 5 in India on February 15

Xiaomi is expected to announce the new Redmi 5 and the Redmi 5 Plus in India on Wednesday, February 14. We received a media invite for the event and the company also posted teasers on social media. The Redmi 5 is the successor to the popular Redmi 4. It switches to the now popular 18:9 aspect ratio display along with few other improvements such as a slightly faster processor and improved cameras. There is also a Redmi 5 Plus model that has a larger, higher resolution display with a larger battery. It is being said that the two phones will be rebranded as Redmi Note 5 and...

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Samsung Galaxy S9+ cases leak: alcantara and Clear View

We've seen cases by third-party makers leak the design of the upcoming Galaxy S9+, but now we get a chance to look at some of Samsung's official cases for the upcoming flagship. There's good news for alcantara fans, but four flip cases are featured too. In the upper right of the image you see a wireless fast charger with a slightly different design than the S8-generation wireless chargers. Official cases for the Samsung Galaxy S9+ A couple of days ago we saw the flip cases - officially called Clear View cases - handled on video. They are pretty much the same as the S8 cases - the...

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Infinite Red V7+ is vivo's offer for St. Valentine's Day

Several months ago vivo released the V7+ in Energetic Blue, and today the 6" phone gets another color option - Infinite Red. The phone, designed in collaboration with Manish Malhotra, famous Indian fashion guru, comes just in time for St. Valentine's Day. The fashion designer said the collaboration created a phone "that symbolizes the spirit of youth and infinite love." Kenny Zeng, CMO at vivo India, added the launch is "an opportunity for consumers to express their love in a more elegant and captivating manner." The vivo V7+ comes with a red back panel, engraved with a floral...

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Nokia 7 plus will be the first Nokia with 18:9 screen

The Nokia 7 plus will be the first Nokia phone to have the new-standard 18:9 screen and that screen will stretch 6-inches across. The screen will sit underneath Gorilla Glass while the back of the Nokia 7 Plus will be made of aluminum and house a dual camera with Zeiss branding. The camera will offer 2x zoom thanks to a "wide" 12MP and "tele" 13MP snappers. The cameras will be bolstered by Nokia's Pro mode for fine shooting parameters control and will be able to capture "Bothies" with the aid of the front-facing snapper (said to be a 16MP one). Nokia 7 plus specs leak The Nokia...

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Red Honor 7X arrives in US for St. Valentine's Day

Two months ago the Honor 7X was officially introduced to global markets. Now the Huawei subsidiary midranger is making its way to the United States in a classy Flame Red color. According to Honor, the launch is related to the upcoming St. Valentine's Day next week, matching LG's strategy with the new Raspberry Rose V30. Aside from the color, everything else in the new variant is the same as the original Honor 7X. It has 5.93" FullView display, Kirin 659 chipset, dual cameras and 32 GB internal storage. The battery is 3,340 mAh and the OS is Android 7.1 Nougat with EMUI 5.1 plastered...

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