Science is paving the way for bringing lions back from the list of endangered species of animals. Two lion cubs, Victor and Isabel, have been born by the means of artificial insemination and scientists at the University of Pretoria, who are researching the reproductive system of female African lions, say that they are the first such pair of lion cubs in the world. Andre Ganswindt, the Director of University of Pretoria's mammal research institute, says that the two cubs, a male and a female, were born on August 25 and are healthy and normal. He further informs that they had collected sperm from a perfectly healthy lion and his team has pulled off the scientific feat after 18 months of intensive trails, reports AFP. The female lion that gave birth to the two cubs was artificially inseminated after her hormone levels were found to be viable. "And luckily it was successful," said Ganswindt, adding that "there were several attempts, but surprisingly it didn't take too much effort." As per the researcher, the breakthrough could be reiterated for saving other endangered species of big cats as well. Additionally, instead of transporting lions for breeding, the new method will enable scientists and breeders to simply move the sperm to receptive females. The research was carried out at the Ukutula Conservation Center, which is 80 kilometres northwest of Pretoria in South Africa's North West province. The findings are part of a research being done by Isabel Callealta, a Spanish veterinarian and PhD student at the University of Pretoria. Callealta trained the lions personally in such a manner that they lie next to a fence, where scientists can draw blood samples to determine hormonal levels and assess the perfect time for insemination. Imke Lueders, one of the scientists involved in the study, said "having the first lion cubs ever born from artificial insemination in their natural range country, and not in a zoo overseas, is an important milestone for South Africa." "Assisted reproduction techniques are another tool in our conservation box, of course not a sole solution, but another technology that we can use to protect endangered species," Lueders adds. As per the report, Lions are extinct in 26 African countries and their numbers in the wild have dwindled down to 43 percent over the last two decades, with roughly only 20,000 left. The new breeding technique provides some hope to bring these numbers back up again, and not only for lions but also for other big cat species. Cover and intext Image courtesy: AFP 
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Humans have always had a fascination with robots. From being a mainstay in science fiction to aiding smooth operations of large warehouses, robots have been becoming a mainstream entity over the last few years. Given the sudden boom in robotics development, a common open-source Robot Operating System was created by Willow Garage and Stanford’s Artificial Intelligence Laboratory. ROS acts as middleware and provides low-level device control and other services. Users of Microsoft Windows have had to rely on an experimental build for now, one maintained by the community, but Microsoft has now announced that they will support ROS natively on Windows. Core ROS was ported to Windows in September thanks to the community’s efforts, but with Microsoft’s announcement, companies deep into robotics can expect Windows to natively support ROS. However, the feature is still very much experimental and hopefully, Microsoft will continue to improve it and make it final sooner than later. “People have always been fascinated by robots. Today, advanced robots are complementing our lives, both at work and at home,” Lou Amadio, principal software engineer for Windows IoT, wrote in a blog post. “As robots have advanced, so have the development tools. We see robotics with artificial intelligence as universally accessible technology to augment human abilities … [and] this development will bring the manageability and security of Windows 10 IoT Enterprise to the innovative ROS ecosystem.” The integrated version is called ROS1 and currently integrates seamlessly with Visual Studio and also leverages Windows Machine Learning thanks to the Microsoft’s development environment. ROS1 will also be capable of harnessing the power of computer vision, Azure Cognitive Services, and Azure IoT cloud services as a native part of Windows. In addition to distributing a Windows-optimized build of ROS, Microsoft said that the company is also working with Open Robotics and ROS Industrial Consortium to expand on what the ROS manufacturing process is capable of, with the goal of boosting efficiency. 
If newly leaked information is to be believed, then the Microsoft Surface Laptop 2 and the Surface Pro 6 will not be blessed with USB Type-C ports. Until now, we were under the impression the new Microsoft Surface devices would feature the port that’s steadily growing in popularity and prevalence, but leaked images from MySmartPrice show a Surface Laptop 2 in a new black colour but with no USB Type-C ports. In the same way, a report from WinFuture explains that “the hardware of the new Surface Pro 6 and Surface Laptop 2 remains completely identical externally.” The German site WinFuture also says that the base variant of the new Surface Laptop 2 will feature an Intel Core i5 CPU, 8GB of RAM, and 128GB of SSD-based storage. This is definitely a bump over the previous model, which offered only 4GB of RAM on the base variant. While there’s a spec upgrade on the Surface Laptop, WinFuture claims the base variant of the new Surface Pro 6 will still ship with an Intel Core m3-7y30 CPU and 4GB of RAM. In return, Microsoft is expected to lower prices of these two models by just a bit. Possibly the new Surface Pro 6 If Microsoft announces a new generation of Surface Laptop and Surface Pro 6 devices with only a Mini DisplayPort and no USB Type-C ports, it would be highly strange (and even maybe dumb), considering how it has announced the new Surface Book 2 and cheaper Surface Go devices with the USB Type-C port. On the other hand, if Microsoft is only touching up the new Surface devices with nothing more than a CPU upgrade, then there’s a good chance there will be no USB Type-C. We’ll know if all of this is true soon because Microsoft is reportedly holding a Surface event on October 2 in New York City, where it’s expected to announce the new Surface Laptop and Surface Pro. Microsoft is expected to sell costlier variants of both devices in a new black colour. Inline image courtesy: WinFuture Cover image courtesy: MySmartPrice
If you’re thinking of purchasing a new laptop then you’re in the luck as we have found some good deals today on Paytm Mall on laptops. The products we have picked out from the platform are from brands like HP, Lenovo, Asus and more. Lenovo Ideapad 320E Price: Rs 35,390 Deal price: Rs 22,390 (inclusive of cashback) The Lenovo Ideapad 320E features a 15.6-inch HD display with a resolution of 1366 x 720 pixels. The laptop is powered by an Intel Core i3 6th Gen processor, which is paired with a 4GB DDR4 RAM and 1TB hard drive. The machine comes with DOS, which means you need to install OS on your own. Click here to buy. Asus VivoBook X507 Price: Rs 35,980 Deal price: Rs 26,419 (inclusive of cashback) The Asus VivoBook X507 comes with a 15.6-inch FHD display with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels. The laptop is backed by an Intel Core i3 6th Gen processor, which is paired with a 4GB RAM and 1TB hard drive. The laptop also has a fingerprint sensor with Windows hello. Click here to buy. HP 15q Price: Rs 45,889 Deal price: Rs 40,490 (inclusive of cashback) The HP 15q sports a 15.6-inch FHD display, which offers a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels. The laptop is powered by an Intel Core i3 6th Gen processor, which is paired with a 4GB DDR4 RAM and 1TB hard drive. The machine is also equipped with an Intel UHD 630 graphics card. Click here to buy. Apple MacBook Air Price: Rs 77,200 Deal price: Rs 56,099 (inclusive of cashback) The Apple MacBook Air comes with a 13.6-inch display with an LED backlit. The machine is powered by an Intel Dual Core i3 processor. The device packs an 8GB DDR3 RAM and 128GB storage. It also has an Intel HD 6000 graphics card equipped in it. Click here to buy. Apple MacBook Air MQD42HN Price: Rs 92,500 Deal price: Rs 74,798 If 128GB storage is not what you are looking for then this 256GB variant of the MacBook Air might fit the bill. It has a 13.3-inch display with an LED backlit. The machine is backed by an Intel Dual Core i5 processor, which is paired with an 8GB DDR3 RAM and 256GB storage. Click here to buy. 
The Nokia 5.1 Plus smartphone will go on sale for the first time on Flipkart at 12PM today. Interested buyers can also head to Nokia’s official website to order the budget smartphone. HMD Global, the Finnish company that sells the Nokia-branded smartphones, launched the smartphone in August but unveiled the price of the device in the last week of September. The Nokia 5.1 Plus (Review) is priced at Rs 10,999 in India. The company has also attached offers and discounts with the smartphone. Customers can buy the handset on “No cost EMI” which is available at Rs 1,834 per month. Standard EMI is also available. There are bank offers under which customers can get 10 percent instant discount on Mastercard for ‘First Online Payment’ and Axis Bank Buzz credit card users can avail 10 percent off. HMD Global has partnered with Airtel and customers can get Rs 1,800 cashback and upto 240GB free data on a recharge with Rs199, Rs 249 and Rs 448 per month. The sale starts at 12PM today Nokia 5.1 Plus specifications The Nokia 5.1 Plus sports a 5.86-inch HD+ display with an 84 percent screen-to-body ratio and 19:9 aspect ratio. The phone is powered by a MediaTek Helio P60 chipset with a 3GB RAM, and comes with a 32GB onboard storage, with an option to expand it by up to 256GB. At the back of the phone, there is a dual-rear camera setup fitted with 13MP + 5MP lenses with a f/2.0 aperture, and on the front is an 8MP unit with f/2.2 aperture and 80.4-degree angle of view. The Nokia 5.1 Plus also comes under the Android One programme which means that the smartphone will get timely security and OS updates. HMD Global says that the Nokia 5.1 Plus will be one of the first devices to be updated to Android 9 Pie. The dual-SIM smartphone is backed by a 3060 mAh battery and will be available in Gloss Black and Gloss Midnight Blue colours.
OnePlus is updating its OnePlus 3 and OnePlus 3T phones with the latest OxgenOS 5.0.6 Over The Air update. The new patch brings the September Android security patch for the two smartphones, along with some general bug fixes and improvements. However, that is all there is to the update as there are no new features or additions to the operating system. As mentioned, the new patch is being seeded as an OTA update and can take some time to reach every device. One can check if it’s available on their unit by heading over to Software Updates in Settings. As per OnePlus’ Software Maintenance Schedule, which was announced back in June, the OnePlus 3/3T will receive regular OTA updates till November 2018. The company will be seeding new features, Android version updates and Security patches once in two months for two years since a phone was launched. This will be followed by bi-monthly Android security patch updates for another year. This means that the OnePlus 3/3T should be up-to-date in terms of security until November 2019. Alongside the OnePlus 3/3T, OnePlus 5/5T, and the OnePlus 6 (review) fall under the new Software Maintenance Schedule. The company’s latest handset, the OnePlus 6, recently started receiving the OxygenOS Open Beta 4 update. The most notable is perhaps the touch latency issue fix, which many users were complaining about. There’s also Optimised standby power consumption, which should also result in better battery life of the phone in general. The OnePlus 6 runs on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor with up to 8GB RAM, and up to 256GB of storage. The 6.28-inch display features an Optic AMOLED panel with FHD+ resolution. On the rear is a dual camera setup that features a 16MP primary sensor with a f/1.7 aperture and a secondary 20MP sensor with a f/1.7 aperture. On the front, there is a 16MP selfie camera. The whole package is backed by a 3300mAh battery. OnePlus will soon announce its OnePlus 6T smartphone, which will reportedly launch on on October 17. The upcoming device will feature an in-display fingerprint sensor and is rumoured to feature a ‘waterdrop’ notched display. It might feature a 6.4-inch AMOLED screen with a 2340x1080p resolution and is expected to be launched running on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 SoC. It is speculated to be launched in 6GB and 8GB RAM versions with options of 64GB/128GB/256GB of internal storage. Overall, except for the new notch design and an in-display fingerprint sensor, the OnePlus 6T might be the same as the OnePlus 6 in terms of processor, storage and RAM configurations. You can read our rumour roundup of the smartphone here. 
Another day, another OnePlus 6T teaser. OnePlus, on its official social handles, has released a small 5 second video teasing the edge of the smartphone. One glimpse of the teaser, and it looks like the smartphone will have an edge-to-edge display with slim bezels. Information circulating the internet suggests that the OnePlus 6T will be announced on October 17. The date seems to be a little early as historically OnePlus has launched its “T” devices in November. Additionally, an image of the launch invite also features the new tagline “Unlock The Speed,” which is most likely a reference to the presence of an in-display fingerprint sensor on the upcoming phone. Vivo was the first company that launched a smartphone with an in-display fingerprint sensor. The OnePlus 6T is rumoured to feature a ‘waterdrop’ notch display, same as the Oppo R17 Pro or the Vivo V11 Pro. In terms of display size, it is rumoured to sport a 6.4-inch AMOLED screen with a 2340x1080p resolution. As mentioned above, the device is expected to feature an in-display fingerprint scanner and a previously leaked image of the device’s retail box and the new invitation image hint at the same. The smartphone is expected to launch running on the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 SoC, which is coupled with the Adreno 630 GPU. The OnePlus 6T was also listed on an online retailers’ website ahead of the launch. The listing suggests that it could be launched in 6GB and 8GB RAM versions and with 64GB/128GB/256GB of internal storage. With the “T” cycle of OnePlus phones, the design usually doesn’t change. However, it looks like the notch and fingerprint sensor will be the biggest external changes with the OnePlus 6T. In terms of optics, the OnePlus 6T was rumoured to feature a triple rear camera setup. However, a recently leaked image of the device’s rear panel suggests that the company might equip the phone with dual cameras only. The first official TV ad of the smartphone has been on air for quite a few days now, and it also hinted at the same, although nothing is certain until the device is launched. The OnePlus 6T is confirmed to ditch the 3.5mm audio jack – another physical change when compared to the OnePlus 6. As far as pricing is concerned, it could be priced at $550 (Rs 38,000 approx), however, the online listing that revealed most of the upcoming device’s specs was selling it for $569, which approximates to Rs 41,000. Information circulating the internet also suggests a change in the mAh capacity of the OnePlus 6T’s battery when compared to the 6. The OnePlus 6 houses a 3300mAh battery and the OnePlus 6T will reportedly feature a 3700mAh battery. Now, this isn’t the largest battery capacity on a smartphone as we have seen devices sporting a 4000mAh and even 5000mAh batteries. The OnePlus 6 does have a good battery life and with an increased capacity and software-based optimizations that make it even better, the OnePlus 6T could end up having a better battery life than its predecessor with the extra capacity. The OnePlus 6T isn’t the only device from OnePlus that will launch in 2018. OnePlus is working on a TV as well and has announced a contest for OnePlus fans to name the TV. The TV is expected to make its debut in December. Apart from phones, OnePlus had launched a power bank back in 2014 but never released a follow-up. The company has launched OnePlus Bullets earphones and launched the OnePlus Bullets Wireless along with the OnePlus 6. With the absence of a headphones jack from the OnePlus 6T it is possible that the company will announce a USB-C OnePlus Bullets headphone, but that’s just us speculating. A key innovation lies just beneath the surface. Prepare for the #OnePlus6T. pic.twitter.com/uWuTsp7Lcb — OnePlus (@oneplus) September 30, 2018 More power. It's coming. #OnePlus6T pic.twitter.com/S8wEL329vx — OnePlus (@oneplus) September 29, 2018 
Google’s Chromecast has been a vastly popular device, with just enough features to keep the users happy, and enough missing for everyone to look forward to the next generation of the device. The Google Chromecast is up for an upgrade and turns out, even before Google had a chance to reveal the new entertainment dongle, Best Buy has already sold a unit to a lucky customer. The news comes directly from the customer himself, who took to Reddit to discuss his experience. In a post titled “I think I bought the 3rd gen Chromecast too early,” the OP (original poster) writes “I went to Best Buy earlier to pick up a Chromecast for my new TV, then I noticed the packaging and design was different from my first one. I thought it was just a design refresh taking queues from the Chromecast Ultra. Then when I was at the cashier, they couldn't scan the item because it wasn't in the system yet because the release date is on the 9th of October (Same day as the 2018 Google event) but I guess they put it out too early. But since I already had it in my hand and was the same price as the 2nd generation Chromecast, they let me have it under the old SKU. Upon setting up at home and comparing it to my 2nd gen Chromecast, it seems a little thicker. The top is no longer glossy and the Chrome logo has been replaced with the G Google logo. Still micro-USB (sad right). They did remove the magnetic HDMI connector on the tip and base of the Chromecast which is a bummer.” 3rd gen Chromecast on the left vs 2nd gen Chromecast on the right When asked about the various experiences by other users, the OP notes that he wasn’t able to set up the device because it kept telling him that he needed to update the Google Home app, but the update hasn’t been released yet. The OP already notes the physical changes, stating that the Chrome logo has now been replaced by a G and the finish is now matte instead of glossy. He also revealed that the device will be launching on October 9, the same day Google is expected to launch the third generation of Pixel smartphones.
The Huawei9 Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro are just 2 weeks away from being officially announced, yet, that hasn’t kept the leaks machine from holding back the information on the two phones. Turns out, there has been a massive leak from the house of Huawei. Isreali tech website Girafa seems to have got hold of the launch presentation of the two phones, revealing some very interesting features, some of which don’t exist on any phone, let alone other Huawei’s phones. The first unique feature we may see be announced is Voice ID. This is supposed to be some sort of voice unlocking feature which could involve bone conduction. As you can see in this image, Huawei says the Mate 20 phones will be the first in the world to support voice unlocks. It is very likely that in order to use the feature, you’re going to have to use Huawei’s own headset, similar to HTC’s USonic, which tailored the sound profile based on the inner structure of the listener’s ear. However, this only worked with HTC’s supplied earbuds since they came with the requisite hardware. The feature is said to be so effective that you will be able to use your voice even in crowded, noisy places to unlock the phone Both the Huawei Mate 20 Pro and Mate 20 will apparently sport 24-megapixel pixel cameras, and triple-lens cameras on the back, with the better camera hardware being reserved for the Pro. The Mate 20 Pro will allegedly have an entirely redeveloped wide angle lens that will replace the telephoto lens that was a first of its kind, found on the P20 Pro. The slides also reveal the main camera might come with AI Smart Zoom, moving object detection, automatic focus, and zoom tracking. Hivision, meanwhile, seems to be an AR feature that will resemble Google Lens. The slides further reveal that the Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro will feature in-screen fingerprint sensors, but the Mate 20 Pro will also have a 3D face-unlock module. The slide claims that Huawei’s face-unlock hardware takes half the time to execute the feature in comparison to the iPhone X, however, with the iPhone Xs and iPhone Xs Max also featuring much speedier. Lastly, both phones will be powered by the Kirin 980 processor as expected. The Kirin 980 was the first 7nm processor to be announced, manufactured by TSMC. The Huawei Mate 20 Pro will feature a 6.9-inch curved display, 6GB of RAM, 4,200 mAh battery, and IP67 rating, while the regular Mate 20 model will have a 6.53-inch flat screen, 4GB of RAM, 4,000 mAh battery, and IP53 rating. In terms of battery, there’s an expectation of a new Supercharge technology which will get you a 70% charge on the 4,200 mAh battery in 30 minutes. The Huawei Mate 20 and Mate 20 Pro are expected to be revealed by the company at an event in London on 16 October, so we will know for sure whether these alleged slides and the information contained within them are true or not. Image Credit: Girafa
OnePlus has been relentless with software updates for the OnePlus 6, a phone that launched in June. The flagship smartphone was the first outside of Google’s own devices to receive the Android 9 update and the company is continuing to enhance the user experience through the beta program. In that regards, OnePlus has rolled out OxygenOS Beta 4 for OnePlus 6 users and the new update brings a number of improvements and as usual bug fixes. You can see the detailed changelog below OxygenOS Open Beta 4 Detailed Change Log System Fixed touch latency issue Optimized standby power consumption Communication Optimized UI for speed dial and calling interface Fixed issue of accidentally answering the second call while using answer calls by gesture Community 2.2.0 Community notices added as feature New feed for following community members Stickied comments displayed on the app Added more options to share threads General user interface tweaks and bug fixes Of the above changes, the most notable is perhaps the fix for the touch latency issue that had been cropping up for some users. While a fix for the issue has been pushed out, it remains to be seen whether it will work consistently across all devices. Optimised standby power consumption should also result in better battery life of the phone in general, which is great given that OnePlus is known for impressive battery life, besides its speed. OnePlus had released the 3rd Beta for OxygenOS a little over 10 days ago. The OnePlus 6 sports a Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor mated with 6/8GB of RAM, depending on the variant you buy. The phones come in 64GB,128GB and even 256GB of storage. The display is an Optic AMOLED panel with FHD+ resolution. The dual camera setup on the back sports a 16-megapixel primary sensor with a f/1.7 aperture and a secondary 20-megapixel sensor with a f/1.7 aperture as well. On the front, there is a 16-megapixel selfie camera. All of this is backed by a 3300mAh battery.
Apple recently launched the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max at an Gather Around event in the US. The phones went on sale last week and users have already started to report some issues with the premium smartphone’s charging. According to a report, several users are facing problems when they charge their iPhones with wired chargers. They say that when they plug-in their iPhones to charge with the charger, the handsets didn’t charge until they had to manually wake the screen up. Some users said they had to flip the cable before it started to charge the smartphone. According to Gizmochina, the users have created a thread on the Apple Community website which lists the problems. Famous YouTube personality Lewis Hilsenteger of the Unbox Therapy has also confirmed the issue. He asked for eight iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max smartphones and he claims that of the eight, seven units suffered from the issue. He claims that “one iPhone XS Max didn’t even wake up even after pushing the power button while another didn’t charge at all even after waking up the phone.” As per a fix, users are needed to turn on the “USB Accessories” feature under “Face ID and Passcode” settings. However, the fix reportedly is working for everyone. The report says that some users even took their phones for a replacement but the replacement units are also plagued with the same problem. Meanwhile, Apple hasn’t issued an official statement until now. The problem is apparently software-related and an update is likely to fix the issue.
Google will reportedly pay Apple an amount of $9 billion (approx Rs 65,000 crores) to remain the default search engine for iPhone's Safari browser this year. According to Goldman Sachs analyst Rod Hall, the amount could go up to $12 billion (about Rs. 87,000 crores) in 2019. The also claims that Apple is one of the biggest sources of traffic for Google on Search. “We believe this revenue is charged ratably based on the number of searches that users on Apple's platform originate from Siri or within the Safari browser,” Business Insider quoted Hall as saying in an investor note. According to the report, in 2013 and 2014 the sum was $1 billion (Approx Rs. 7,250 crores), and in 2017 the figure was reportedly $3 billion (about Rs 21,750 crores). Apple is said to use Google as the default search engine in Safari on iPhones and iPads that run on iOS. Apart from this, the Cupertino-based giant also uses Bing in several other places such as searching the web via Siri. Apple recently announced the financial results for its fiscal 2018 third quarter and said it posted a quarterly revenue of $53.3 billion which is an increase of 17 percent from the quarter a year-ago. Apple said that the international sales accounted for 60 percent of the revenue. “We’re thrilled to report Apple’s best June quarter ever, and our fourth consecutive quarter of double-digit revenue growth. Our Q3 results were driven by continued strong sales of iPhone, Services and Wearables, and we are very excited about the products and services in our pipeline,” Apple’s CEO Tim Cook said at that time.. “Our strong business performance drove revenue growth in each of our geographic segments, net income of $11.5 billion, and operating cash flow of $14.5 billion. We returned almost $25 billion to investors through our capital return program during the quarter, including $20 billion in share repurchases,” Apple CFO Luca Maestri added. The Apple Services arm grew 31 percent from a year ago, contributing $9.6 billion in revenue (from the $7.3 billion reported for the period in 2017). The June 2018 quarter is the 13th consecutive quarter to register a double-digit revenue, Apple noted.
Last week, an image made rounds on the internet claiming to show the back panel of the Nokia 7.1 Plus smartphone. The image is claimed to have leaked from the factory and showed a dual-camera setup. Now the phone has been spotted on TENAA essenstially confirming the back panel design with two cameras and a fingerprint scanner. The listing also shed light on the specifications of the smartphone. The dual rear camera setup allegedly consists of a 12MP sensor coupled with a 13MP lens. The front shooter consists of a 20MP unit. According to the specs sheet, the Nokia 7.1 Plus comes with a 6.1-inch panel featuring 1080 x 2246 pixel resolution. There is an octa-core CPU clocked at 2.2 GHz, which could be a Qualcomm Snapdragon 710 chipset. The SoC is paired with two sets of RAM and storage, the 4GB/64GB or 6GB/128GB. The phone is powered by a 3,400 mAh battery and runs on Android 8.1 Oreo. Source Last week, the back panel that leaked showed Android One marked implying that the smartphone may come under Google’s Android One Program. But the photo in the TENAA listing does not show the Android One marking. Previously, a front panel leak claimed to be of the Nokia 7.1 Plus did not show a “notched” display and it is not clear from the TENAA listing that the smartphone will sport a notch or not. The user who leaked these photos claimed that the Nokia 7.1 Plus will have thin side bezels, the top bezel is expected to house a camera, proximity sensors and the earpiece and there will be a thick chin. The device is said to support 18W fast charging. There is also a speculation that the device will launch with the alleged Nokia 9, which has been reported to sport a penta-camera setup on the back. HMD Global may launch the smartphone is expected to launch on October 4. 
OnePlus has announced a new edition of its ‘The Lab’ initiative that gives select users the chance the get their hands on the OnePlus 6T ahead of its initial availability. The company will choose 10 people who will become among the first to use its upcoming flagship smartphone. These fans will then be invited to these share experience with the user in the form of an ‘in-depth review’. Those interested can click here and fill out the necessary details. The application process will be open till 9PM HKT (6:30PM IST) on October 8. Those who are selected are expected to share a detailed unboxing impressions as well as an in-depth review with the OnePlus community. OnePlus is expected to unveil the OnePlus 6T in a couple of months. The phone is expected to features a ‘waterdrop’ notch on a 6.4-inch AMOLED display with a resolution of 2340 x 1080 pixels. It is expected to be powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 845 SoC. The phone will most likely be available in multiple variants. In the camera department, while reports suggest that the phone might feature a triple camera setup, it is quite likely that it will ‘only’ offer a dual-rear camera setup. The company has already announced that it will be ditching the 3.5mm audio jack in the OnePlus 6T. For more information on what to expect from the smartphone, click here.
Huawei has quietly launched a new tablet called the Mediapad M5 Lite. The new tablet features an aluminium unibody build and sports a quad-speaker setup. The tablet sports a 10.1-inch display with a resolution of 1920 x 1200 pixels. It also sports a display aspect ratio of 16:10. Powering the device is a mid-range Kirin 659 SoC. The Huawei MediaPad M5 Lite is available in two variants. One with 3GB RAM and 32GB of storage and the other with 4GB RAM and 64GB storage. The tablet packs a 7500mAh battery and Huawei notes that it supports the company’s M-Pen lite stylus. However, the availability of the stylus with the tablet will vary depending on the region. The MediaPad M5 Lite runs on EMUI 8.0, which is based on Android Oreo v8.0. The most notable feature of the new tablet is the quad-speaker setup. The company notes that the speakers have been tuned by Harman Kardon and feature Huawei’s Histen 5.0 sound system. The device is available in Champagne Gold and Space Grey colour variants. However, it is not yet known if or when the company will launch the device in India.
Apple has managed to persuade a federal appeals court to reverse a decision made last year regarding a patent infringement lawsuit filed by the University of Wisconsin-Madison. According to a report by Reuters, the US Federal Circuit Court of Appeals said that Apple “deserved judgement as a matter of law, because jurors could not have found infringement based on evidence introduced in the liability of a 2015 trial. To recall, the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) had sued Apple in 2014, claiming that the iPhone 5s, 6 and 6 Plus smartphones infringed a 1998 patent that described a means to improve performance by predicting the instructions given by users. The prediction cuit was reportedly used in the Apple A7, A8 and A8X chips found in the phones. In October 2015, WARF won the patent lawsuit as the jury declared that Apple owed $234 million in damage. However, US District Judge, William Conley added $272 million to the initial amount as additional damaged plus interest. He said that WARF is owed a$506 million because Apple continued to infringe the patent till it expired in December 2016. Of course, this isn’t the only legal battle that the Cupertino based company is wrangling at the moment. Chipset maker, Qualcomm has sued Apple, claiming that the iPhone-maker was stealing “vast swathes” of confidential information related to chips and trading secrets with Intel to improve the performance of its rival’s chips.
Earlier this year in July, Google announced a Wear OS update with a new design for appointments, a faster Google Pay, and some bug fixes. Now Google is rolling out Wear OS version 2.1 to all compatible smartwatches. The new update comes with a long list of improvements, including a new streamlined interface that lets you into the smartwatch’s most important screens with a single swipe. For example, swiping left from the home screen shows you Google Fit, which now sports an overhauled screen that shows ‘Move Minutes’ and ‘Heart Points’ statistics. Swiping right brings up Google Assistant, which too has been tweaked to be more “proactive”. It now provides the user with useful and timely information like traffic updates and potential flight delays. Swiping up, on the other hand, reveals all unseen notifications. Swiping down gives the user access to useful shortcuts to features like Google Pay and ‘Find my phone’. Google Assistant also suggests the users to try out features they may not have in the past. A ‘smart suggestions’ feature also helps the user find a restaurant close to their hotel or check the weather when they reach a new destination. These updated features are expected to boost usability in Wear OS-based smartwatches by quite a bit. Back in March, Google decided to rename Android Wear to Wear OS. Revealing a new logo for it, the company commented, “We’re just scratching the surface of what’s possible with wearables and there’s even more exciting work ahead. As our technology and partnerships have evolved, so have our users.” Since then, Google has been increasingly steadfast in pushing the new smartwatch operating system. According to Google’s blog post on the matter, it will roll out the new update for Wear OS over the next month. The update is expected to be delivered automatically to eligible smartwatches. Though not as extensive as Apple’s approach to the smartwatch, we believe Google has injected Wear OS-running smartwatches with a new lease of life.
What’s common among ostriches, rheas, emus, and kiwis (not New Zealanders obviously)? They’re all elephant birds that are members of the extinct family of birds called Aepyornithidae. They had two genera previously recognised by scientists Aepyornis and Mullerornis, explains Sci-News. Believed to have roamed the island of Madagascar until their extinction around the thirteenth to seventeenth centuries, the first of its species, Aepyornis maximus, had often been considered to be the world’s largest bird. Back in 1894, British scientist CW Andrews described an even larger species, Aepyornis titan. It has often been dismissed as an unusually large Aepyornis maximus specimen. A new study led by James Hansford reveals Aepyornis titan was after all a distinct species. Aepyornis titan is now named Vorombe titan. According to Sci-News, the species had a body mass of 800 kilogrammes and grew up to a height of 10 feet (3 metres). Its name means ‘big bird’ in Malagasy and Greek. “Elephant birds were the biggest of Madagascar’s megafauna and arguably one of the most important in the islands evolutionary history — even more so than lemurs,” Hansford commented. “This is because large-bodied animals have an enormous impact on the wider ecosystem they live in via controlling vegetation through eating plants, spreading biomass and dispersing seeds through defecation.” In the new study, Hansford analysed hundreds of bones of elephant birds from museums around the world to find the world’s largest bird along with his colleague, Professor Samuel Turvey. In the process they revealed that their taxonomy is actually spread across three genera and at least four different species, thereby bringing about the first taxonomic reassessment of the family in over eighty years. “Without an accurate understanding of past species diversity, we can’t properly understand evolution or ecology in unique island systems such as Madagascar or reconstruct exactly what’s been lost since human arrival on these islands,” commented Professor Turvey. He emphasised the importance of knowing the history of biodiversity loss to determine how to go about conserving today’s threatened species. The study has been published in the Royal Society Open Science journal. Inline image courtesy: Jaime Chirinos Cover image courtesy: Heidi Ma
A Facebook hack has resulted in the data of 50 million accounts exposed. Facebook’s Vice President of Product Management, in a detailed blog post, said that the social network discovered a vulnerability in its system that allowed hackers to “take over people’s accounts.” Facebook claims to have patched the vulnerability and additionally, users affected by the hack have been forced to sign in to their accounts once again. If you have been logged out of your account tonight, chances are your account may have been hacked. Facebook will also show a notification on top of the news feeds of users that have been affected. In the blog post, Rosen detailed that the hackes exploited a “technical vulnerability” in the “View As” feature, a privacy tool that allows users to see how their own profiles look to someone else. Rosen wrote, “It’s clear that attackers exploited a vulnerability in Facebook’s code that impacted “View As.” This allowed them to steal Facebook access tokens which they could then use to take over people’s accounts.” The vulnerability was the result of three specific bugs and was introduced in July 2017, according to Rosen who addressed reporters at a press call. “It’s important to say — the attackers could use the account as if they were the account holder.” The View As privacy tool, if accessed by a third person, will expose all your information including your phone number, email address and other intimate details. Users who used the feature since the vulnerability was introduced have been logged out as well. Facebook claimed 40 million more accounts have been signed out, as a result. Facebook said it’s unknown who is behind the attack or when it originated from. It also doesn’t know whether the data stolen has been used for any illicit purposes. The company is still in the beginning stages of the investigation. However, it claimed that initial investigation has indicated the hackers have not been able to post to accounts, change information or access private messages. Although Zuckerberg said the hackers “did try to query our APIs — Name, gender, hometown, etc. We do not yet know if any private information was accessed this way.” Facebook said it is working with the FBI to get to the bottom of the attack. The social network has over two billion active users and the breach has affected roughly 2.5 percent of the users. “This is a really serious security issue, and we’re taking it very seriously,” Zuckerberg said in a post on Facebook. “We have a major security effor at the company that hardens all our surfaces and investigates issues like this. I’m glad we found this and we were able to fix the vulnerability and secure the accounts. It definitely is an issue that this happened in the first place. This underscores the attacks that our platform and community face.” The attack comes at a time when Facebook has been criticized over how it handles user’s data. On Thursday, Gizmodo reported how the company has been using phone numbers that users gave as two-factor authentication, to target users for advertisements. Furthermore, Facebook data was found to be harvested by Cambridge Analytica and other third parties to target ads. Also, back in August, Facebook’s Chief Security Officer Alex Stamos resigned from the company. We expect more details to surface about who is behind the hack and whether the stolen data has been used for anything sinister. In case you were logged out and forced to log in again, you might be among those who are affected. I know I was.
For a few years, budget mechanical keyboards have flooded online marketplaces. These keyboards use Cherry MX-compatible mechanical switches or clones that allow them to keep the costs down. However, w...
The average 2018 smartphone of today in the Rs 10,000–15,000 range ostensibly possesses the following keywords in its description or advertisement: high screen-to-body ratio, high-gloss finish,...
A wireless speaker is an ideal device to boost the sound of your smartphone without spending thousands of bucks. They are portable and handy, at the same time eliminate the hassle of a wired speaker. We have handpicked some of the best Bluetooth speakers that are up for sale on Amazon with a hefty price cut. So, let’s get started. iBall Musi Cube BT20 Portable Bluetooth Speaker Price: Rs 1,119 Deal price: Rs 699 The iBall Musi Cube BT20 Portable Bluetooth Speaker features a built-in mic, which allows you to answer calls with the phone connected to it. Besides regular Bluetooth streaming, users can also route audio via a flash drive, an AUX cable, and a microSD card. According to the company, the speaker can provide up to four hours of music playback in a full charge. Click here to buy. Juarez Super Bass Mini Portable Speaker Price: Rs 2,490 Deal price: Rs Rs 699 The Juarez Super Bass Mini Portable Speaker is Bluetooth 4.2 enabled and it comes equipped with an AUX port and a microSD card slot. It sports a built-in mic, which makes it easy to answer calls when your phone is connected. It is said to deliver up to eight hours of music playback in a single full charge. Click here to buy. Zebronics ZEB-NOBLE Portable Speaker Price: Rs 777 Deal price: Rs 470 The Zebronics ZEB-NOBLE Portable Speaker is equipped with a built-in FM, microSD card slot and an AUX port. It comes equipped with a microphone and onboard controls that lets you manage the audio volume and skip between audio tracks. Click here to buy. PTron Mini Portable Wireless Speaker Price: Rs 1,500 Deal price: Rs 699 The PTron Portable Wireless Speaker is Bluetooth 4.2 enabled and has an AUX port for streaming music via a 3.5mm audio cable. As per the company, the speaker has a battery life of up to eight hours. Click here to buy. Portronics Cubix Bluetooth Speaker Price: Rs 1,599 Deal price: Rs 729 Portronics claims that the Cubix Bluetooth Speaker works in a Bluetooth range of 10m. The speaker comes with a built-in AUX cable, which is definitely a welcomed addition. According to the company, it has a battery life of up to four hours. Click here to buy.
At its F8 developer conference in May, Facebook promised of bringing new changes to its Messenger app to make it cleaner and faster. Now, it seems that the company is testing the new changes as some users have reported of seeing the new features without updating their app. As per Android Police, the Messenger app has received a new revamped design for some users and as mentioned above, they didn’t update their app, which means that it's a server-side update. The new design is said to completely change the look of the app as the bottom bar only features three tabs. The camera and new chat button can be seen on the upper right corner, while the less urgent options like games, businesses and more have been moved to the explorer tab. The customizable chat colours still remain but the chat screen has been revamped with a cleaner interface with fewer elements and clutter. Facebook will also roll out a dark mode for the Messenger app with the new interface but there are no screenshots of the app yet. It should be noted that the new changes are being rolled out from Facebook’s server side, one will not be able to enable them even if they are signed up as its beta tester. Alongside the new interface, Facebook, at the F8 2018 event, announced that the Messenger app will also come with integrated language translation feature, starting with English to Spanish text conversion support. Some AR based camera effects will also be enabled on the app, which are aimed mainly at businesses. The company says, "the following brands will be launching AR effects for their Messenger experiences: ASUS, Kia, Nike, and Sephora. ASUS will be bringing the “unboxing experience” to life with the ability to get a deeper look at phone features and functionalities." You can read more about it here. 
HMD Global has announced that its has started to roll the Android 9 Pie OS update on the Nokia 7 plus (Review) and owners of the smartphones will start receiving Android 9 Pie on their Nokia 7 plus from September 28 but the Digital Wellbeing features will be available to users from this autumn. As part of the Android One programme, the Nokia 7 plus will introduce App Actions - a feature unique to Android One devices and Google Pixel smartphones running on Android 9 Pie. App Actions constantly learns from a users daily usage and assists them with everyday tasks. The Digital Wellbeing features encourage users to take breaks from screen time. New functionalities include - highlighting device time on the Dashboard, the ability to set time limits for app usage and Wind Down Mode which fades the phone to grayscale and activates Do Not Disturb at a predetermined time. “We constantly strive to deliver on our promise of offering pure, secure, up-to-date Android on Nokia smartphones. Today, we are extremely delighted to start the roll out of Android 9 Pie on Nokia 7 plus – making us among the first to offer the latest innovations from Google, including Android One exclusive features such as App Notifications, to the value flagship tier,” Juho Sarvikas, Chief Product Officer, HMD Global, said in a statement. The Nokia 7 plus sports a 6-inch FHD+ display and is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 SoC with 4GB RAM. It is the first smartphone by the company to offer an 18:9 display aspect ratio. At the back of the phone is a dual-rear camera setup with 12MP wide-angle and 13MP telephoto lens with Zeiss optics. At the front is a 16MP camera, also with Zeiss lens. The device offers a 3800mAh battery.
Recently, the Apple has launched three new smartphones iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR. These new devices finally have gone on sale in India today at 6:30 PM. The Apple enthusiast in India can purchase these devices both online and offline, while Paytm Mall has announced an interesting offer under which buyer will get Rs 7,000 discount. There is also an EMI and free delivery option available for buyers. The launch of new iPhone means a price cut on older models in the country. Along with iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max, Paytm Mall is also offering up to Rs 12,000 cashback on iPhone X. The 64GB variant of iPhone X is available for Rs 92,690 along with Rs 12,000 cashback on Paytm Mall. The iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max 64GB variant is priced at Rs 99,999 and Rs 1,09,900 respectively, while their 256GB variant is available for Rs 1,14,900 and Rs 1,24,900 respectively. iPhone XS specifications The Apple iPhone XS features a 5.80-inch display with a resolution of 1125 x 2436 pixels. The smartphone is powered by a Hexa-core Apple A12 bionic processor. The device packs a 3GB RAM and 64GB internal memory. It has a dual 12MP rear camera and a 7MP sensor on the front. iPhone XS Max Specifications The iPhone XS Max has a 6.5-inch Super AMOLED display with a resolution of 1242 x 2688 pixels. The Phone is powered by a Hexa-core Apple A12 Bionic processor, which is paired with a 3GB RAM and 64GB internal memory. The smartphone comes with a dual 12MP + 12MP rear camera and a 7MP unit on the front.
