Google is developing a censored search engine for China

Google is said to be working on project Dragonfly which aims to bring the search back in China. The company is developing an engine that will blacklist websites and terms about human rights, democracy, religion and protests - all of them really sensitive topics in China. The project has been underway since the fall of 2017 and has been demonstrated to Chinese officials at CES in January. According to internal documents, acquired by The Intercept, the final version could be launched in the next six to nine months, pending approval from the Chinese government. If the project goes...

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Google Podcasts support coming to Android Auto soon

Back in June, Google released its own Podcasts app for Android, aptly called Google Podcasts. However, since its release, some have likely been wondering when the app would get official Android Auto integration. Android Police reports that one of its readers began seeing Google Podcasts integration working, but not entirely. According to this reader, if you start Playing a Google Podcast before firing up Android Auto, it appears in the media controls. However the option to actually select Google Podcasts among other music apps like Google Play Music or Pocket Casts is not...

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YouTube starts calling Stories what they are, rolls them out to more people

The Stories format that Snapchat introduced way back when doesn't show any signs of going away anytime soon. On the contrary, it seems like every single online service worth its salt is adding just such a feature. Following Instagram and WhatsApp and even Facebook itself, last November Google-owned YouTube announced its own spin on the model, which it called Reels. Well, say goodbye to Reels because this functionality is now called Stories and it's recently been rolling out to more people as an extended test. Last year Reels was only accessible to creators with more than 10,000...

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JBL Link View smart display with Google Assistant goes up for pre-order

If Lenovo's Smart Display with Google Assistant, which got official a few days ago, hasn't impressed you, perhaps this will. The JBL Link View is the second Google Assistant-powered smart display to hit the market, and it's now up for pre-order at its maker's official online store. You can have one if you pay $249.95. Shipping starts on September 3. The Link View has an 8-inch "HD" touchscreen (exact resolution unknown, but we assume it's 720p), "legendary JBL sound" with deep bass and clear highs, a 5 MP front-facing camera for video calls, wireless Bluetooth streaming from your...

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Oppo F9 hands-on image, more promo posters surface ahead of August 15 launch

Oppo has been teasing the upcoming F9 for a couple of days now, with its small triangle-shaped notch and VOOC charging. The online campaign continues with the promo images below, which present us with two color versions of the handset: Sunrise Red and Twilight Blue. At the same time, the company has started plastering billboards across Indonesian cities, showcasing the phone in the hands of actress Chelsea Islan. The billboards tell us that VOOC will enable two-hour talk time from just a five-minute charge. The Sunrise Red variant of the F9 has also been leaked in a hands-on...

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iPhone X Plus will have iPad-like landscape UI

Earlier today we've shown you purported dummies of the three upcoming iPhones launching this September. Since one of those models will be the biggest iPhone ever, you may have been wondering if Apple was planning to do something special with its user interface. This leak confirms that it is. Thanks to the latest beta of iOS 12, the version of the OS that will be preinstalled on the 2018 handsets, we can see that the company will use an iPad-like landscape UI for the iPhone X Plus - the 6.5" device (the official name hasn't been leaked yet). As evidenced by the screenshots above and...

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Counterpoint: Nokia was the 9th smartphone brand globally by shipments

Despite selling phones with the old Nokia name, HMD the company is quite young - it was founded in December 2016, less than two years ago. That makes it all the more impressive that it is now a Top 10 manufacturer globally by shipments, according to data from Counterpoint Research. Comparing the second quarter of this year to that of 2017, HMD's shipments grew a whopping 782%. In total, that's 4.5 million units shipped or about half what established players like LG and Lenovo (plus Motorola) are doing, not to mention HTC and Sony, which aren't even in the Top 10. That puts HMD and...

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New dummies give us even better idea of 2018 iPhones' design

We've seen some renders of the 6.1-inch iPhone that's supposed to be the most affordable of the bunch with an LCD panel and also some high-quality renders of the plus-sized 6.5-inch iPhone model. But this is the first time we see the 5.8-inch middle-ground model - the direct successor to 2017's iPhone X. The pictured dummies give us a good idea of what all three 2018 iPhones will look like. They will all have slim bezels (except for the "budget" iPhone) and notches. Those will house the advanced Face ID recognition. The 6.1-inch LCD model will have a single rear camera, while...

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Lenovo Watch X Plus goes on sale tomorrow

Announced back in June, the Lenovo Watch X has been on the market for around CNY 299 ($44) but today, the company announced its slightly pricier and more capable Plus variant. The Watch X Plus comes with Milanese black or silver straps while the screen is OLED with luminous hands. A sapphire glass protects the screen while the housing is made of 316L stainless steel. It offers the barometer, gyroscope, geomagnetic and heart rate sensors and even blood pressure measurement. A 600 mAh battery keeps it alive for about 45 days of standby time - just like the standard Watch X - and can...

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Our Alto's Odyssey Android game review is up

Alto's Odyssey won over the hears of many mobile gamers with its beautiful scenery and simplistic gameplay. It's iOS version has been out for quite some time but it's only now when the game hits Android's Play Store. So a review of the game felt like something worth doing. As always, the graphics are stunning and the ever-changing and randomly generated scenery is all we needed to keep playing this soothing and chill game. However, Will has some small complaints about the overly simplified gameplay and the sometimes unoptimized background for gaming under the sun. Hear what else Will...

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Samsung Galaxy Tab S4 10.5: official introduction video and infographics

Samsung just unveiled the Galaxy Tab S4 10.5, but what is it about and how does it improve on the Galaxy Tab S3 9.7? Well, our hands-on review can help answer the questions. Or you could watch the official introduction video. It stars two Directors of Product Marketing from Samsung and spans 5 minutes. The video starts from basics - what's in the boxing, the new screen size (with narrower bezels to boot), the new S Pen and so on. Don't have 5 minutes? Here's the Tab S4 infographic, which covers the key facts. For example, AKG helped tune the quad 1.2W speakers on the tablet. Also,...

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Samsung Galaxy Tab S4 10.5 hands-on review

Tablets never killed the PC, but they did change how we look at laptops - between keyboard add-ons and styluses, a modern 2-in-1 is an alleged Swiss knife of productivity. The Samsung Galaxy Tab S4 10.5 is bundled with an S Pen and you can get a Book Cover keyboard if you type more often than you sketch.

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Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.5 is the newest kid-friendly tablet

Along with the premium Galaxy Tab S4 10.5 Samsung also unveiled a tablet for Junior - the Galaxy Tab A 10.5. It comes pre-loaded with Kids Mode and eight child-friendly apps and games, including BRIO World Railway and Toca Hair Salon 3. Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.5 The tablet can be used by the whole family - thanks to Multi User Mode everyone can have their own account. The Always On Daily Board shows the time, calendar appointments, weather info and photos from the gallery. One feature that the Tab A shares with the Tab S4 is the quad speaker system, which is enhanced with...

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Samsung Galaxy Tab S4 10.5 flagship tablet comes with DeX, S Pen

The Samsung Galaxy Tab S4 10.5 brings major improvements to DeX - the PC-like mode that Samsung added to Android. The tablet is also a relatively rare higher end offering with a 10.5" Super AMOLED screen and a Snapdragon 835 chipset. DeX mode can be enabled without connecting the tablet to a dock. This means apps will launch in resizable windows that you can drag around. This tablet is also the first to support two screens - both the tablet's screen and the external monitor (connected over HDMI) are available. Older DeX implementations disabled the phone's screen. Speaking of, the...

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Watch the best of Xiaomi Mi A2 in just 30 seconds

The Xiaomi Mi A2 speaks for itself - a pure Android One experience built on top of Xiaomi's bang for the buck mastery. But in case it wasn't speaking loud enough, here's a 30 second video giving you the highlights. Check this video out! Everything you need to know about #MiA2 in just 30 seconds. #2isbetterthan1 @Android pic.twitter.com/QHjcFNUgrK— Mi (@xiaomi) August 1, 2018 It seems that Xiaomi believes the Mi A2 will sell on the strength of its cameras. The dual camera on the rear is a 12MP + 20MP setup with f/1.75 aperture. The 20MP selfie camera uses the same module as the one on...

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Gboard gets 28 new languages, Text to GIF feature on Android

Google's just release an update for its Gboard keyboard app. Available on Android now, it brings several new features and languages. According to the changelog, you can now make your words into GIFs with the "Make a GIF" feature. If stickers are your thing, you can now search in 15 more languages. There are also 28 new languages for the keyboard itself, listed alphabetically: Bagri, Batak Toba, Bench, Bhili, Capiznon, Chavacano, Eastern Min, Fiji Hindi, Ge'ez, Gurani, Ingush, Karachay, Khorasani Turkic, Kipsigis, Maharashtrian Konkani, Lezgian, Mizo, Maguindanao, Malay (Brunei),...

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Flipkart unveils exclusive Samsung Galaxy On8 - a Galaxy J8 with a discount

Flipkart and Samsung unveiled the Galaxy On8 - an exclusive online version of the Galaxy J8. It will be available in Black and Blue starting on August 6. The hardware of the two phones is identical, including the RAM and storage (4GB / 64GB), so it comes down to the price. The Galaxy On8 currently costs INR 17,000 ($250/€210) compared to J8's INR 18,000. That's because of an INR 3,000 discount that Flipkart is currently offering. Yes, the On8 actually has a higher MSRP, though we doubt we'll see the discount go away - otherwise people can just buy the regular version of the...

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Samsung Galaxy Note9 handled on video, Galaxy S9+'s camera setup confirmed

As Samsung's Galaxy Note9's launch is getting closer, leaks start to get spicier. In the latest piece, the phone appears in a live video and by the looks of it, it's a legitimate pre-production sample. Throughout most of the video, we get to further confirm the device's striking similarity to its predecessor and for some reason, it has a screen protector applied. On we back we saw something that wasn't available in the previous reports. Looking at the dual camera design, the main lens looks a lot like the adjustable aperture ome on the Galaxy S9+. The same goes for the secondary...

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Oppo teases the F9 with two new images

Two days ago Oppo Malaysia teased the new F9 will have a tiny notch like the Essential PH-1 and the Sharp Aquos S2. Today the global Oppo account took it to Twitter with two more teasers, effectively confirming the design. The images show a tide coming at a beach, formed like the Oppo F9 front and an underwater cave with a rock neatly positioned to mimic the notch. Oppo F9 teasers All three teasers of the Oppo F9 have the same water-related theme, suggesting the phone will have waterproofing with at least IP67 compatibility. Since the F-series of Oppo is selfie-oriented, the...

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LG Stylo 4 is now available as Amazon Prime Exclusive for $250

If you are on the market for stylus-enabled phones, but you don't want to break your bank for one of Samsung's Galaxy Notes, LG has a decent budget alternative that comes bundled with a pen. And the Stylo 4 has now joined the Amazon Prime Exclusive program that lets you save a few extra bucks from its retail price. Of course, you can't expect top-notch performance out of the LG Stylo 4 but a lot of the features that you can find on the Galaxy Note8 are available on the Stylo 4. The device is powered by a modest Snapdragon 450 chipset driving a big 6.2-inch 1080 x 2160 IPS display. RAM...

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YouTube adding swipe gestures for skipping videos in Android app

YouTube has been rolling out a handful of features lately but as most of the times, some of them are available to just select number of users in a soak test before being introduced to the wider public. The latest update brings support for swiping to skip to the next or go back to the previus video but it's still not available to everyone. The gestures are pretty intuitive and replaces the forward and back buttons that appear on the video when you tap on it. It's a tad faster and more convenient this way. The transition animations shown in the video below remind us of Android P's recent...

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Apple smashes another fiscal record, reaches 17% increase in revenue

Apple announced its financial results for the third fiscal quarter between April and June. Cupertino amassed $53.3 billion of revenue, 17% more than the same period last year, Tim Cook announced in a press release. This is "the best June quarter ever and our fourth consecutive quarter of double-digit revenue growth," he added. All four geographic regions posted revenue growth YoY, even if international sales were 60%, while the other 40% came from the domestic US market. This is good news for shareholders which saw a 40% increase in their earnings up to $2.34 per...

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