Nintendo Switch Mini to Release This Financial Year: Report

Nintendo Switch Mini release date slated for this financial year according to a recent report.

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Latest OxygenOS Open Beta for OnePlus 5, OnePlus 5T, OnePlus 6 and OnePlus 6T halted due to devices getting bricked

Highlights: OnePlus halts OxygenOS Open Beta for OnePlus 5 and above smartphones. The company had recently started seeding the new updates. It's paused because some OnePlus 5/5T users reported of their phones being bricked. OnePlus is rolling back the new OxygenOS Open Beta for OnePlus 5 and above smartphones that it recently started seeding. As per the company, the new update is being paused because some OnePlus 5/5T users have complained of the OTA update not installing after being received on their units and for some unlucky few, their handsets were bricked, unable to boot, after installing the new update. So, if you have received the new update, we suggest you hold off on flashing it on your phone. As the open beta for the OnePlus 6/6T was similar to the one released for the OnePlus 5/5T, for good measure, the company has halted its rollout as well.  Those users who are experiencing the above-mentioned issues can try and recover their device by following the instruction laid out by OnePlus here. In case you are unable to get your phone to work, the company suggests one gets in touch with the official customer care service, who have been made aware of this issue and will help the users flash the package remotely.  As mentioned, the new open beta patches for the phones are almost the same and bring the same set of features for the four handsets. It optimizes the screenshot function and enables quick reply to messages when in landscape mode. The latter is aimed at making texting easier when watching a video or playing games. The Gaming mode also gets optimised and the OnePlus Laboratory feature was supposed to come for the OnePlus. Both, OnePlus 6 and 6T now support world clock with weather information.  In terms of specs, the OnePlus 6T features a 6.41-inch Optic AMOLED display with a 1080 x 2340p resolution and is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 SoC. The device is backed by a 3700mAh battery and comes in 6GB and 8GB RAM variants. There is also a 10GB Mclaren edition variant of the phone. In terms of storage, one has the option of 128 or 256GB. In terms of optics, the handset comes equipped with a 16+20MP camera on the back and a 16MP selfie sensor on the front.  Related Reads: OnePlus 5, OnePlus 5T, OnePlus 6 and OnePlus 6T receive new Open Beta builds OnePlus 6T users facing battery drain issue  

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Google disables Screenwise Meter app that collected user data extensively on iOS

Highlights: Google Screenwise Meter app collected extensive user data. The company has apologised and disabled the app on App Store. Like Facebook Research app, the Google app also used an Enterprise Certificate. Everyone slammed Facebook for having an app that was used exclusively for data collection and Apple banned the app from its App Store. Soon after, TechCrunch reported that Google too has a similar app that violates Apple App Store’s policies and collects bundles of data on users and the company has now disabled the app. Called Screenwise Meter, the Google app functioned by crediting gift cards to users who opted in the company’s Opinion Rewards program, in exchange for keeping track of a user's web traffic and data by installing a VPN app. Similar to the Facebook Research app, the VPN app installed by it used an Enterprise Certificate, which indicates that an app is meant for use within a company and not for the public. The app is still up on the Google App Store.  Google has issued a statement to the press saying, “The Screenwise Meter iOS app should not have operated under Apple’s developer enterprise program — this was a mistake, and we apologize. We have disabled this app on iOS devices. This app is completely voluntary and always has been. We’ve been upfront with users about the way we use their data in this app, we have no access to encrypted data in apps and on devices, and users can opt out of the program at any time.” As per the report, while the Screenwise Meter app was meant for users aged 18 and above, users as old as 13 years of age can be added as secondary panellists if they were included in the same family group. Google had rebranded the app as part of the Cross Media Panel and Google Opinion Rewards programs to reward users for installing the activity tracing services on their phones, PC web browser, router, and TV.  The Facebook Research App was reportedly offering up to $20 per month to users to download a VPN app. The company is said to have been secretly paying users to install a “Facebook Research” VPN app that enables it to access to their web activity and data. The report claimed that Facebook sidestepped the App Store and “rewarded” teenagers and adults to download the Research app. Reportedly, Facebook admitted that it was running the Research programme to gather data on usage habits and later, Apple banned the app.  Related Reads: Apple bans Facebook Research App that allegedly spied on teenagers

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Google releases timeline for Google+ shutdown

Highlights: Google+ shut down timeline released. No user will be able to create new Google+ profiles, pages, communities, or events on the platform from February 4. A bug forced Google to prepone the shut down of the consumer version of its social media platform Google+ to April. At that time, not much information was available about the whole process, but now, Google has released an update on the topic. The latest update brings the step-by-step breakdown of the whole procedure that the company wants the Google+ consumers to follow to save their data. Google says that the process of deleting content from consumer Google+ accounts, pages, and album archive will take a few months. According to the timeline shared by Google, no user will be able to create new Google+ profiles, pages, communities, or events on the platform from February 4. If you’ve used Google+ for comments on your own or other sites, this feature will be removed from Blogger by February 4 and other sites by March 7. All Google+ comments on all sites will be deleted starting April 2. Google+ Community owner or moderator have an option to download and save data for your the community. “If you sign in to sites and apps using the Google+ Sign-in button, these buttons will stop working in the coming weeks but in some cases may be replaced by a Google Sign-in button. You’ll still be able to sign in with your Google Account wherever you see Google Sign-in buttons,” Google said in a blogpost. For G Suite customers, Google+ should remain active. Finally, on April 2, all Google+ accounts and pages will be shut down and Google will begin deleting content from consumer Google+ accounts. Photos and videos from Google+ in users' album archive and Google+ pages will also be deleted, however, if you have backed up photos and videos in Google Photos, you can access them anytime. In December, Google announced that it will shut Google+ for consumers four months earlier than originally planned. The company said that they had found (yet another) bug in the platform which impacted 52.5 million users in connection with a Google+ API. Google+ was pitched against Facebook in 2011, but it failed to take off as expected. Google+ will now join instant messaging app Google Allo, which will discontinue in March. Related Report: Google is shutting Google+ for consumers amid security concerns

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Specs comparison: Honor View 20 vs Xiaomi Poco F1

The Honor View 20 is the world’s first smartphone that comes with a 48MP sensor on the back along with a TOF 3D camera. The device is priced at Rs 37,999 in India and is now on sale at Amazon. On the other hand, we have the Xiaomi Poco F1, which gave a tough fight last year to a lot of premium devices. It has a dual camera set up on the back both and is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor. So, let’s begin.  The Honor View 20 sports a bigger 6.39-inch display that offers a resolution of 1080 x 2310 pixels, while the Xiaomi Poco F1 features a slightly smaller 6.18-inch display that comes with a resolution of 1080 x 2246 pixels.  The Honor View 20 is powered by a Kirin 980 octa-core processor, which is paired with 6GB RAM and 128GB internal memory. On the other side, the Xiaomi Poco F1 is backed by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor, which is coupled with 6GB RAM and 64GB internal memory.  The Honor View 20 features a dual 48MP + TOF 3D camera setup on the back along with a 25MP sensor on the front. On the other side, the Xiaomi Poco F1 has a 12MP + 5MP dual camera setup on the back with a 20MP sensor on the front.  The Honor View 20 is available on Amazon for Rs 37,999, while the Xiaomi Poco F1 is available for Rs 19,999 in India.  

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ISRO inaugurates Human Space Flight Centre

Highlights: ISRO inaugurates Human Space Flight Centre. The centre will be the home of the upcoming GAGANYAAN crewed space mission. GAGANYAAN is expected to take off by 2022. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) inaugurated the Human Space Flight Centre (HSFC) at its headquarters in Bengaluru yesterday. The new centre will be the home of all crewed missions by ISRO in the future, including the GAGANYAAN project. The government-owned space agency made the announcement of its new inauguration on its official Twitter account, along with a picture of the dignitaries present and a full-scale model of of GAGANYAAN’s crew module. While S Unnikrishnan Nair serves as the Founder and Director of the HSFC, R Hutton is the Project Director for the GAGANYAAN project. The grand opening was made by K Kasturirangan, the Former Chairman of ISRO in the presence of K Sivan, the incumbent Chairman and Secretary of the Department of Space at ISRO. “HSFC shall be responsible for implementation of GAGANYAAN Project which involves end-to-end mission planning, development of Engineering systems for crew survival in space, crew selection and training and also pursue activities for sustained human space flight missions. HSFC will take support of the existing ISRO Centres to implement , the first development flight of GAGANYAAN under Human Space Flight Programme,” reads the news release from the Indian space agency. ISRO began work on its human spaceflight programme way back in 2009 with a budget of Rs 12,400 crore. Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on August 25 last year that India would put astronauts in space by 2022 as part of the GAGANYAAN mission. If everything goes to schedule, India will be the fourth country to carry out crewed missions indigenously, after Russia, the US, USSR, and China. The entire project is projected to cost less than Rs 10,000 crore. The Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark-III (GSLV III) is expected to be the launch vehicle for the mission. Only last week ISRO delivered two satellites into space. Kalamsat, the first satellite, was designed and developed by members of a Chennai-based organisation on a budget of Rs 12 lakh. It was the first payload to use PS4, the fourth stage of the vehicle, as a platform to orbit the earth. Microsat-R, the second satellite, was built by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) for military and imaging purposes.   Related Read: ISRO puts Microsat-R and student-made Kalamsat in space    

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Facebook could integrate WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook Messenger by 2020 or later: Mark Zuckerberg

Highlights: Mark Zuckerberg says that integration of Facebook’s services is a “2020 thing or beyond.” Reason for the unification is said to be security, better user experience, and interoperability of services. Zuckerberg also said that over 2.7 billion people use Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp or Messenger each month. Facebook’s Chief Executive, Mark Zuckerberg was reportedly planning on integrating WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook Messenger. This is now official as Zuckerberg announced the plans in the company’s Q4 earnings call that the new implementation won’t happen at least until 2020. “We're really early in thinking through this. There's a lot more that we need to figure out before we finalize the plans. And then, of course, this is going to be a long-term project that I think will probably be to whatever extent we end up doing it in -- a 2020 thing or beyond,” Says Zuckerberg.  In the call, Zuckerberg stated that some of the key reasons for the integrating of these services are security, better user experience, and interoperability of services. For example, WhatsApp uses end-to-end encryption and the company, and users of its services, could benefit from this security measure being implemented on its platforms like Messages and Instagram. This is also said to help users with interoperability so that they can switch between the company’s apps with ease since the underlying technical infrastructure would be, more or less, the same. In example use cases, there was also talk of a system for people that use Facebook messaging as their SMS client and that enabling SMS over WhatsApp would be more secure as its encrypted end-to-end.  It was also revealed that over 2.7 billion people use Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp or Messenger each month. There are also more than two billion people who use at least one of these services every day. Additionally, Zuckerberg reveals that Instagram has passed 500M daily active users on Stories. However, not all news is good news since there is an increase of spurious accounts on Facebook with around 116 million fake accounts and 255 million duplicate accounts on the site. A previous report on Facebook integrating its services suggested that the plan will require reconfiguration of how WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook Messenger function at base levels. It also tipped that all apps could incorporate end-to-end encryption, which would provide enhanced protection for messages. Even if the company manages to successfully pull off this new venture, it remains unknown how it will tackle challenges like the spread of fake news on the platforms, and a standardised login mechanism. Related Reads: Mark Zuckerberg plans to integrate WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook Messenger: Report

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