Lenovo Z5s arriving on December 6

The Lenovo Z5s appeared on TENAA and 3C last month, giving us a sneak peek of its appearance. It will have three cameras on the back with a fingerprint scanner to keep it company, while the front has one shooter in the center. Later we heard that this might not be a waterdrop notch, but an in-display camera, and today Lenovo confirmed we'll know for sure on December 6, when the official announcement will take place. The company VP Chang Cheng posted the image on Weibo, to save the date for a new announcement. The Lenovo Z5s will have ZUI and is expected to be "powerful and...

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Google starts eSIM program for phone makers

Google is moving forward with the eSIM technology that it embedded into the Pixel 2 (XL) and Pixel 3 (XL). eSIM is arguably a convenient solution for consumers "fumbling around to try to place [a nanoSIM] into a small slot". But until the most recent security update, Pixel 3 support for eSIM is limited to one carrier in the US - Google Fi. Google is expanding the Pixel 3's eSIM support to a few new countries and carriers with the latest December security patch. Google did also briefly mention in a blog post that it would begin a program for Android phone makers to use eSIM more easily and...

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Samsung caught using DSLR photo on Samsung Galaxy A8 Star landing page

By this point, it's safe to say you can never assume that phone makers promote their phones using actual photos taken with the product that they are advertising. Is this false advertising? Only if a note explicitly says one thing and lies about it. Otherwise, is it up to interpretation? This time, the photo in question is one that you can find on the Hong Kong version of Samsung's Galaxy A8 Star landing page. Scroll down a bit and you'll see it, describing Live Focus and how the user can manually adjust the bokeh effect to as little or as much as they want. Only, this photo wasn't actually...

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Android tablets finally getting Apple Music support

Apple finally adds support for the Apple Music app to work on Android tablets. This comes just a few days after Amazon announced Apple Music support on all its Echo smart speakers - just in time for the holiday season. Apple made the right move by offering its Music service to Android smartphones back in 2015 when it launched in beta on the Play Store. After all, why limit the number of subscribers? There's a whole second market that can be catered to: those who don't want, or can't afford an iPhone but still want Apple's premium music subscription service. According to 9to5Mac,...

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Deal: Save $100 or $150 when you buy an iPhone XS, XS Max, or XR for Verizon or Sprint

iPhone deals are few and far between, especially when we're talking about Apple's latest models. And that's why this is interesting. Best Buy is currently offering $100 or $150 off a brand new iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, or iPhone XR. Obviously there's a catch or two, or three. First off, the deal only applies to devices meant for Verizon and Sprint. Second, you need to be an existing customer with either carrier and upgrade a line you already have - new lines aren't getting this promo. And finally, the price cut is going to be applied as bill credits when you get the phone on either...

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Google fixes Pixel 3 RAM issues and expands eSIM support with December update

Google has announced the December update for its Pixel and Nexus smartphones today. The factory images are already available for those who want to install it right away, as are full OTA zip files. The over-the-air rollout should also have begun, but as usual that will take at least a few days to reach all of the supported devices in the wild. The bad RAM management issues in the Pixel 2, Pixel 2 XL, Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL should be fixed with this update, Google says. Additionally, the company has expanded the support for eSIMs to a bunch of new carriers: Sprint in the US, EE in the UK,...

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Google Play User's Choice Awards 2018: here are the winners

Voting on the Google Play User's Choice Awards is closed, here are the winners for 2018. This is the first year that a "fan favorite" was elected in three categories: games, apps, movies. There are other categories too, including TV shows, ebooks and audio books. You voted PUBG Mobile as the Best Game of 2018 and it took home the Fan Favorite award as well. The fan favorite app was Google's own YouTube TV, the fan's choice of movie was Avengers: Infinity War. Marvel has a strong presence in the movie category, securing 4 spots in the Top 5. Only Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle is a...

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Realme U1 will go on sale on December 5 through Amazon

The Realme U1 will go on its first sale in India on December 5 at noon. It's a flash sale and it's happening exclusively on Amazon India so if you're interested in picking up a device, you have to act quick. You'll have your pick between the 3+32GB version for INR 11,999 (€150) and the 4+64GB model, which will cost INR 14,499 (€180). Light up your world with #IndiasSelfiePro #RealmeU1 . Sale starts on 5th Dec, 12 noon only on @amazonIN https://t.co/reg8WhCGEN pic.twitter.com/EVOvZ2HWNh— Realme (@realmemobiles) December 3, 2018 The Realme U1 was unveiled last week - it's the first...

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Deal: Verizon shaves $300 off the Galaxy S9 for today only

Verizon has a one day only deal for the Samsung Galaxy S9 that brings an instant $300 discount to its retail price. Normally $720, the 64GB Galaxy S9 is now $420 or 24 installments of $17.50. The deal is valid through Verizon's Device Payment program, which lets you upgrade to a new device earlier if you've paid out your old one. Naturally you'll need to activate the device with a Verizon card. The Samsung Galaxy S9 is due for a replacement in March but it's still quite the capable phone. And if you're not a Verizon user don't fret - there are plenty of Galaxy S9/S9+ deals going...

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Latest OnePlus 6T update brings an equalizer for Bluetooth headphones

The OnePlus 6T abandoned the headphone jack, but that caused an issue - the Audio Tuner option (i.e. the equalizer) in Oxygen OS only worked with wired headphones, Bluetooth ones were not supported. So, unless you had a pair of USB-C headphones, you essentially had no equalizer on your new phone. This injustice is being addressed with version 9.0.7 of Oxygen OS, which will improve the overall stability of the Bluetooth connection too. Wi-Fi stability is getting improved as well and atandby power consumption has been decreased. Camera performance when shooting slow-motion videos should...

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Google Assistant now has a less obtrusive UI in Google Maps

The Google Assistant wants to be your co-pilot - earlier this year it landed on Android Auto, now it's rolling out to Google Maps for Android as well. It seems that this feature is enabled for some (but not all) users who have updated to version 10.4.1 of Maps. To summon the Assistant you either use the "Hey, Google" hot word or tap on the microphone. In either case, an unobtrusive panel slides up from the bottom. Any actions won't cover up the map - e.g. starting a call or sending a message keeps the dialer and messaging apps in the background so you always have a clear view of the...

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Honor posts impressive sales results during Black Friday Weekend

Honor became one of the top-selling smartphone brands on Black Friday, following its success during Diwali in India and Singles' Day in China. The company boasted in a press release about triple-digit increases of sales in multiple countries, along with sold out smartphones and reaching the top spot in various categories. In Western Europe the Honor 9 Lite was the best-selling smartphone in the €150-€200 category in online sales, while Honor 10 popped up in the Top 10 list on Amazon. The yearly increase is 250%, even if Honor wasn't really present last year. The...

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Samsung has started assembling Galaxy M phones in India

Samsung has commenced production of its Galaxy M series smartphones in India with market launch expected to come in early 2019. The information has reportedly been relayed by industry insiders and according to them the Galaxy M10, M20 and M30 will be assembled in Samsung's factory in Noida. The Samsung Galaxy M line is said to replace the old Galaxy J and Galaxy On series and will come with ample storage options. The Galaxy M10 will use Samsung's own Exynos 7870 with 3GB of RAM (as per Geekbench) and there's even a rumor that some (if not all) of the Galaxy M phones will have...

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Move over Huawei, the Samsung Galaxy A8s is coming on December 10

Today, mere hours after Huawei announced that it will unveil the nova 4 with a selfie camera inside the display on December 17, Samsung announced it will show off the Galaxy A8s a full week earlier - on December 10. The move is by no means coincidental - a fight to bring out the first phone with a screen cutout has been on since late November. At this point it looks like Samsung will indeed beat Huawei to the punch, but things could change. The Samsung Galaxy A8s is coming on December 10 The screens on both the nova 4 and the Galaxy A8s are LCDs made by BOE, but it's said that...

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Samsung Galaxy S10+ renders hit the web, 5G model demoed

The Samsung Galaxy S10's development may be further ahead than we imagined - the company demoed a 5G-enabled prototype, even though that was supposed to be unveiled in March, a month after the 4G version. Beyond that, the phone looks very much like the Galaxy S9 - no notches, no display holes. Just regular bezels. Here are some still shots of this prototype: Alleged photos of a 5G-enabled Galaxy S10 prototype Next up are CAD-based renders of the Samsung Galaxy S10+, courtesy of @OnLeaks and 91Mobiles. There's a dual selfie camera located in a hole in the screen, on the back...

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Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 gets an update as company seeks 25 testers

Xiaomi introduced the Mi Mix 3 slider with a ceramic back and promised a global arrival, but not before it gets beta testers to clear out any bugs. The company relaunched today its Global Mi Explorer Program, which is aiming to recruit 25 people across the globe to test the newest Mi Mix 3. To be part of the program, you have to be a registered member of the Mi community. Then you should just follow the link provided in Source below. The company has prepared "series of missions" specially designed for Mi Explorers, and then select the lucky 25 participants. Application are accepted...

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AirPods with wireless charging arriving in Q1 2019, all new design in 2020

Apple AirPods is a product that sees strong sales since its introduction back in 2017. According to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, Cupertino is planning an upgrade for Q1 2019 and a completely new version in early 2020. The new product, scheduled to arrive in the following months will have a wireless charging case. The current AirPods' carrying case is charged only with a standard Lighting cable, but the new product will have new components and hinges, redesigned to withstand higher thermal requirements. This will lead to a cost increase of 60%, predicts Kuo. The analyst does not go...

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OnePlus 6T McLaren Edition to hit China on December 14

The OnePlus 6T McLaren Edition will make its global debut on December 11 in London with an Indian event following on December 12 and finally a Chinese launch on December 14. The latter date was made official by OnePlus themselves through Weibo. The 6T McLaren Edition will be shown at a special event in Shenzhen. OnePlus' invite for the Chinese launch There's still no word on the specifics of the OnePlus 6T McLaren Edition but there's a good chance that it will have 10GB of RAM and 256GB of on-board storage. If we go by previous OnePlus partnerships (like the OnePlus 3T...

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vivo officially teases dual-screen NEX 2

The successor of the vivo NEX is on its way and the company officially teased the device on its website. Fancy renders of the phone appeared in the online store, while a promo campaign started on the company's forum, giving one device for the lucky person. The vivo NEX S2/vivo NEX 2 is likely to be launched on December 11, given the promo ends next Monday, while the company is planning a big announcement for its members the day after. The phone will likely have an option with 10 GB RAM and 128 GB storage, according to a Weibo user. The landing page for the next vivo NEX device...

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Huawei nova 4 with in-screen selfie camera to arrive on December 17

Remember the Huawei teaser from last Monday with a shooting star in the upper left corner? The company cleared any confusion today, relaunching the same teaser, but with a camera instead of a light dot, revealing this will be the Huawei nova 4, and it will arrive on December 17. Huawei nova 4 teaser The phone was already spotted in the wild in a pre-production case with its unusual selfie camera in the upper left corner. Given Samsung is yet to announce a launch date for the Galaxy A8s, Huawei looks set to become the first company to introduce a phone with the unusual...

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Top 10 trending phones of week 48

As November ended, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro remained the most popular phone in our database with the Samsung Galaxy A7 (2018) and Huawei Mate 20 Pro joining it to form the same top 3 as last week. In fourth we have the Nokia 8.1 - the yet-to-be-announced international version of the Nokia X7. Samsung Galaxy A9 (2018) dropped to fifth, while another rumored phone shot to sixth - the Galaxy A8s with its front camera sitting in a hole on the screen. Xiaomi Pocophone F1 slid to seventh, while in eight we have the third member of the unofficial phones family with the dual screen vivo...

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