vivo S1 Pro arrives in China as the vivo Y9s

The vivo S1 Pro that debuted in the Philippines last month has now hit the Chinese market. However, since the S1 Pro moniker is already occupied in that market, it has a new name - vivo Y9s. It has an unusual rhombus-shaped camera setup on the back, but the LED flash is outside the shape, allowing you to tell it apart from the vivo S5 that some know as the vivo V17. Looking down the specs sheet the vivo Y9s comes with a 6.38" OLED panel with a waterdrop notch for the 32 MP selfie camera. The chipset is Snapdragon 665 and is coupled by 8 GB RAM and 128 gigs of storage. There is a...

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Samsung Galaxy Note9 gets new Android 10 beta with bug fixes and December security patch

This past weekend Samsung released a software update for the Galaxy Note9 that brought in the December 2019 security patch to the smartphone. Now the company is rolling out a new firmware for those enrolled in the beta program. The beta build based on Android 10 doesn't bring in any new features to the Galaxy Note9, but it fixes issues related to Samsung DeX UI crashing and the phone rebooting after connecting to a mobile hotspot. You can check out the screenshot below for the complete list of bug fixes. The new firmware, sporting version N960FXXU4ZSKH, weighs around 325MB in size...

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December security update now rolling out to Google Pixel devices, face unlock fix incoming

Google's December update for its Pixel family of smartphone is now rolling out to the Pixel 3, 3 XL, 3a, 3a XL, Pixel 2, and 2 XL. In the support thread containing the changelogs, it's mentioned that the Google Pixel 4 and 4 XL will begin receiving the December update next week. The excerpt at the end of the following quote mentions improvements to face unlock, so we might expect to see the Pixel 4 and 4 XL face unlock updated with improved security. In addition to the specific items listed above, the December update includes hundreds of various fixes and improvements across many areas...

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Report: Apple might start releasing iPhones twice a year, four 5G iPhones to come in 2020

A report from CNBC today cites J.P. Morgan analysts who predict Apple is going to change up its launch strategy for 2021. In a note from the analysts citing supply chains, it's predicted that Apple would shift to launching iPhones twice a year. For many years, Apple released iPhones in the fall, leading up to the holiday season. The report states "the shift in strategy would allow Apple to smooth its traditional seasonality and give the company increased flexibility to change its products within a six-month time frame and compete with other device makers that launch new phones throughout...

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T-Mobile launches its nationwide 600MHz 5G network, Galaxy Note10+ 5G incoming

T-Mobile has officially fired up 5G on its nationwide 600 MHz band. The carrier first acquired this spectrum a few years ago from the FCC for a very large sum. OTA TV stations in the US once used these ranges of frequencies. The new network covers 200 million people at launch in over 5,000 cities around the US and covers more than 1 million square miles including more rural parts. In a cheeky sci-fi themed promo video, featuring T-Mobile's President of Technology, Neville Ray, a pair of T-Mobile executives (including a hologram of T-Mobile CEO John Legere) mash a bunch of panels to prepare...

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Xiaomi Mi 10 Pro confirmed by Xiaomi president Lin Bin

Xiaomi's flagship Mi 9 came out last February and since then we've seen several variations which included a compact Mi 9 SE and the slightly upgraded Mi 9 Pro. Now, the company's co-founder and president Lin Bin confirmed that the next flagship Mi phone is also on the horizon. In a comment under a post about the Mi 9 Pro, Lin Bin replied to a fan saying that the upcoming Mi 10 Pro will in fact be the successor to the Mi 9 Pro. While there is still no other info on the next Mi flagship, this is the first official confirmation we've seen. Xiaomi Mi 10 Pro confirmation In related...

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Samsung's Theme Park lets you theme One UI

Samsung has answered the prayers of many users with the Theme Park app. Available as a module for the Good Lock app suite, Theme Park can create a theme, based on your wallpaper. It automatically detects the main colors of your wallpaper and generates a theme. You can choose a different color palette for different UI elements (like the color of speech bubbles), choose a different background color and even pick the icon, icon label and tray colors. Once happy with the result Theme Park automatically applies the theme to your phone. Theme Park should work on most any One UI...

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Apple Pay Express Transit now works in London

After a few months of collaboration, the Apple Pay Express Transit feature now works for all Transport for London services, including the Underground, buses and trams - anywhere there is a yellow reader. Basically, if you have an iPhone or an Apple Watch, you can now leave your Oyster card behind. To start using the Express Transit feature, you just need to pick a preferred card to use for payments. The "express" part of the name means that the usual authentication is skipped to make it faster to use. Interestingly, this feature will continue working for up to five hours after your...

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Facebook now allows you to export all your pictures to Google Photos

In an attempt to get the so-called Data Transfer Project moving, Facebook is now making it easier for users to transfer all their pictures from their Facebook profile to Google Photos. This project is a collaboration between Apple, Google, Microsoft, Twitter and Facebook and the goal is to make it easier for you to transfer data between their ecosystems. As of now, Facebook says the open-source tool to transfer your photos is only available to some users in Ireland but will be introduced to the rest of the world in early 2020. Facebook also adds that the tool will work with other...

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Xiaomi's Mi Watch gains iOS support with first update

The newly-released Xiaomi Mi Watch is now getting its first firmware update with major improvements and the one thing that sticks out is the iOS support. The firmware also launches alongside Xiaomi's Wear App for iOS. According to Xiaomi itself, the OTA update should start shipping on December 3 in China and will further optimize the pairing process because some users were complaining about the watch freezing when setting it up for the first time. The new firmware is also supposed to fix the notification issues regarding the Xiaomi Wear App. Oh, and whether location information...

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Samsung Galaxy S10 Lite support page hints at imminent launch

Samsung's Galaxy S10 Lite is coming quite soon, as evidenced by the support page Samsung put up on its French website. The page is for the SM-G770F/DS model, which is rumored to be the Galaxy S10 Lite. We saw it on an FCC page and have heard that it will offer a 4,500mAh battery with 45W fast charging, a Snapdragon 855 chip to go along with 8GB of RAM. Camera-wise the Galaxy S10 Lite will carry a 48MP main, 12MP ultrawide and 5MP depth units. On the front there will be a 32MP shooter. It looks like Samsung is getting ready to announce the Galaxy S10 Lite very soon. If it will be...

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Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 5G passes certification in South Korea

The Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 has been around for several months now but its 5G version has been stuck in rumorland. Back in October, we saw the tablet obtained certifications from both the Bluetooth SIG as well as the Wi-Fi Alliance and now it was approved by South Korea's NRRA (National Radio Research Agency). Galaxy Tab S6 5G NRRA certification The device is bearing the same SM-T866N model number as the previous listings and the "N" at the end indicates devices that are exclusive for the Korean market. The 5G capable Galaxy Tab S6 will likely debut in South Korea and as of now, it's...

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Official poster of Redmi K30 shows off the quad camera on the back of the 5G model

Actor Wang Yibo is the celebrity endorser of the Redmi K30 series and accidentally or not, some promo shots with the him holding the upcoming phone have leaked. Previously, we saw the front, showing off the dual notch. Now it's time to focus on the back. You can see a quad camera arranged on a vertical camera hump. Based on rumors, it pairs a 64MP main shooter with a 12MP ultra wide, 8MP tele camera and a depth sensor. The circle around it is decorative and appears to be flat with the back. The 5G label below the camera indicates that this model will connect to the next-generation...

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Huawei starts EMUI 10 beta program for Mate X

Huawei has seeded its EMUI 10 to over 1 million devices but it was yet to deliver the new software to its foldable Mate X. Now, that update is getting closer. Huawei has started a beta program for those that want to try out the unfinished EMUI 10 software on their Mate X. As this is a beta software, it's not exactly issue-free so you may not want to install it on your daily driver device. However there are not likely that many Mate X' out in the wild. The device went on sale in China twice, selling out in an instant twice. And it's unlikely that we'll see the Huawei Mate X outside of...

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New vivo X30 teaser reveals a portrait camera able to match professional 50 mm shots

The launch date of the vivo X30 is still a well-kept secret, despite the phone being teased repeatedly day after day. The manufacturer posted today not one, not two, but three promo videos of the vivo X30 lineup on Weibo, revealing even more about the camera setup. The phone will have a dedicated portrait shooter, in addition to its 5x periscope zoom camera and vivo claims it will match professional camera shots with a 50 mm lens. The second video was posted to remind about the periscope super-telephoto lens. The clip is taking place at a party, and in a Gatsby-like...

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Stable Android 10 for Samsung Galaxy S10 rolls out to more countries

After the Android 10 update went live for Galaxy S10 users in Germany, it has expanded to new countries. Right now, S10 owners in South Korea and Panama can update to the stable version of the new software, which includes One UI 2. Meanwhile, beta testers in India, the UK and Poland have been allowed to make the jump to stable. If it goes the same way it did in Germany, those still running Android 9 Pie will receive a notification for the full update within a few hours. If you have a Galaxy S10, S10+ or S10e, you can try manually checking for updates in the Settings (sorry, S10 5G...

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Galaxy S11 screen protector shows slim bezels and narrow chin

Samsung's Galaxy S11 line is getting leaked more extensively with each passing week. We've already seen renders for all three versions as well as a handful of camera details and a Geekbench listing. The latest addition is a screen protector, which shows slim bezels all around and a Galaxy Note10-like centered camera cutout. The bezels appear to be slimmed down in all aspects compared to the Note10 line. The Galaxy S11 in particular is expected to come with a 6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED panel with a QHD+ resolution and 120Hz refresh rate. The smaller S11e will likely sport a 6.4-inch FHD+...

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Xiaomi sells 10 million Redmi Note 8 phones in just three months

Xiaomi officially launched the Redmi Note 8 lineup on August 29. The Redmi Note 8 and Redmi Note 8 Pro started selling almost immediately and just three months later the manufacturer sold 10 million units across the globe. To celebrate the massive accomplishment, the company is discounting the Redmi Note 8 on its website, but it is just the 6/128 GB option and only in China. The 10M announcement • The Redmi Note 8 discount The milestone is impressive on its own, but it is even more remarkable when it is compared with the Redmi Note7 sale - the current midrangers went into...

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Huawei Nova 6 appears in hands-on images ahead of official launch

Huawei is set to unveil its nova 6 range on December 5. We've had more than a fair amount of leaks so far and we know all the key specs and design characteristics. There will be at least three variants of the nova 6 with two flagships as well as a midrange option dubbed the nova 6 SE. This latest leak gives a clear in-hand look at the nova 6, showing off the oval punch-hole cutout, side-mounted fingerprint reader and the quad-camera setup on the back. Huawei nova 6 in hand look Starting up front, we see the 6.44-inch LCD panel with its oval punch hole. The cutout is believed to...

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