Sri Lanka attacks: President lifts temporary social media ban

Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena called for the “immediate” lifting of a temporary ban on several social media platforms, which was put into effect with an aim to curb the spread of misinformation on the networks after the Easter bombings that left over 250 dead in the South Asian country. After the President’s decision, the government urged the public “to use social media responsibly even though the ban is lifted, due to the prevailing situation in the country.”

According to internet's observatory NetBlock.org, which tracks disruptions and shutdowns globally, access to social media and messaging apps were restored in Sri Lanka as of 11 am on April 30 - nine days after after the services were blocked as a security measure following a series of deadly terror attacks. Facebook, YouTube and other blocked services were made accessible with Sri Lanka’s leading internet providers. The access was fully returned for most internet subscribers, following two hours of gradual restoration.

Update: Access to social media and messaging apps is now almost completely restored across #SriLanka, following a gradual return that took two hours to complete after the blockade was first lifted this morning https://t.co/CCNd4xONl2 pic.twitter.com/M3Scd3nFVQ

— NetBlocks.org (@netblocks) 30 April 2019

The restrictions, which were imposed soon after the bombings at three churches and an equal number of hotels, raised concerns over the role of various social media platforms in dissemination of (mis)information. The move implied that platforms like Facebook and its capillary firms WhatsApp and Instagram, are seen as the propagator of violence and propaganda outweighing their benefits.

A New York Times report says that it is unclear how effective the ban was at “curbing the unrest, or whether information spread on social media has contributed to recent reports of some attacks on Sri Lanka’s Muslims and refugees from Pakistan and Afghanistan.” The report also says that Muslims, who comprise about 10 percent of the country’s population, have reported mobs attacking their homes and threatening violence. Those who are unaware, members of the Islamic State terrorist group took the responsibility of the attacks.

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What's It Like Making Games Without Graphics? This Mumbai-Based Developer Tells Us

Amazon Alexa is yet another platform for game developers outside of PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC, iOS, and Android.

from RSS Feeds | GAMES - RSS Feed - NDTV Gadgets360.com http://bit.ly/2V7RQLf

What's It Like Making Games Without Graphics? This Mumbai-Based Developer Tells Us

Amazon Alexa is yet another platform for game developers outside of PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC, iOS, and Android.

from RSS Feeds | GAMES - RSS Feed - NDTV Gadgets360.com http://bit.ly/2V7RQLf

Samsung Galaxy A70 goes up for sale in India: Price, specs and all you need to know

Samsung Galaxy A70 was launched in India in April and the phone is now up for sale in the country. The smartphone maker has revamped its strategy and is now introducing new features in its A-series of mid-range phones to woo customers. The Galaxy A70 is the company's latest offering in the mid-range smartphone segment. Highlights of the smartphone include an FHD+ Super AMOLED Infinity-U display and a 4500mAh battery. Similar to the Galaxy A50, the Galaxy A70 also comes equipped with a triple camera setup on the back. 

Samsung Galaxy A70 Specs

Samsung decided to equip its Galaxy A70 with the Snapdragon 675 platform in India and it comes with 6GB RAM and 128GB of internal storage. There’s also an 8GB RAM/128GB storage version of the device, which Samsung might announce later in India. The storage on the Indian variant of the Galaxy A70 is expandable up to 512GB via a microSD card. The Galaxy A70 features a 6.7-inch FHD+ Super AMOLED Infinity-U display, which means it sports a waterdrop notch on the top that houses the 32MP front camera with f/2.0 aperture.

In terms of optics, the Samsung Galaxy A70 is equipped with a 32MP camera with an f/1.7 aperture, along with an 8MP ultra wide-angle lens with 123-degree field of view. The third 5MP depth sensor helps capture bokeh images on the device. The smartphone is backed by a 4500mAh battery with support for 25W Super-Fast Charging technology and a USB Type- C port. It runs on Android 9 Pie and also comes with a 3.5mm headphone jack.

Samsung Galaxy A70 Price

The Samsung Galaxy A70 is available for purchase via Flipkart and Samsung online shop for Rs 28,990. It comes in Black, Blue, and White colour variants. One can also buy the phone offline from Samsung Opera House and retail stores. Launch offers on the phone includes a Rs 2,000 cashback when buying it via an ICICI Bank credit card. When purchasing the phone via Samsung Online Shop, one can also avail a cashback of Rs 2,000 when buying the phone using HDFC Bank Credit Card EMI option. 

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Poco F1 6GB RAM, 128GB storage variant receives price cut, now available for Rs 20,999

Earlier this month, Xiaomi sub-brand Pocophone announced that it is bringing the Widevine L1 certification and other features to its Poco F1 smartphone. The smartphone features good value for money proposition as it is equipped with a Snapdragon 845 chipset and starts under Rs 20,000. The company has now announced a price drop on the 6GB RAM + 128GB storage model of the phone, which makes it a more enticing option for those who are looking for a handset with good performance, on a budget. The Poco F1 (review) was launched in August last year, in India and this is the second time it has received a price cut in the country. 

The 6GB RAM + 128GB storage variant of Poco F1 will be available at reduced prices via Mi.com, Flipkart and Mi Homes. As mentioned above, the smartphone is powered by the Snapdragon 845 SoC and alongside the 6GB RAM + 128GB storage version, comes in 6 GB + 64GB and 8GB + 256GB models, which are priced at Rs 19,999 and Rs 27,999 respectively. The handset was updated with Widevine L1 certification, which will enable users to stream HD content from Netflix, Amazon Prime and other online video streaming platforms. The MIUI 10.3.4 update for the phone also brings new mode for its AI camera, and Game Turbo, which is slated to improve the gaming experience on the phone.

The Poco F1 is equipped with a 6.18-inch full-HD+ display with a notch on top. The notch houses a 20MP camera sensor.   The phone comes with Liquid Cooling technology to keep the temperatures in check. In the camera department, it sports a dual 12MP + 5MP sensor configuration on the back. The handset runs on a special version of MIUI called MIUI for Poco, which is based on Android 9 Pie. Backed by a 4000mAh battery, it also supports Quick Charge 3.0. 

from Latest Technology News http://bit.ly/2PEoiiw

Redmi Note 7 Pro receives Fortnite support with MIUI 102100 update

The Realme 3 Pro smartphone recently went up for sale in India but the company’s CEO, Madahv Sheth, was teasing the phone until its launch. In one of his promotional tweets, the company executive took a jab at Xiaomi’s Redmi Note 7 Pro smartphone by saying that some latest "Pro" device can’t run the popular online multiplayer Fortnite while the Realme 3 Pro is capable of doing so, out-of-the-box. Xiaomi has now responded to the jab by rolling out the MIUI 10.2.10.0 update for its Redmi Note 7 Pro, which adds Fortnite support on the device. Redmi Note 7 users will now be able to run Fortnite on the phone but there’s no information on what settings the title runs at, on the phone. 

The update comes just a couple of weeks after Xiaomi announced that it is working with Qualcomm and Epic Games. The company said it is working on getting the Redmi Note 7 Pro tested and certified to run Fortnite. The phone maker said that being a new chipset, Epic Games didn’t get an opportunity to test the Snapdragon 675, which powers the phone, and certify it. Xiaomi has not detailed what other changes are brought about with the latest MIUI 10.2.10.0 update. The previous update for the device was rolled out with the global ROM of MIUI 10 V10.2.8.0.PFHINXM and it promised to improve the device’s camera quality.

The previous update for the Redmi Note 7 Pro is supposed to improve the sharpness of images captured in 48MP and 12MP modes. An issue of underexposed images being clicked in portrait mode should also be fixed, along with some improvements in details captured when shooting in low light and image brightness. Further, indoor AWB (auto white brightness). The Android security patch of the phone has also been updated to March. The device also gets some bug fixes and optimisations. You can read more about the update here. 

from Latest Technology News http://bit.ly/2GTniEu

Huawei registers increase in global market share, Samsung and Apple slump in Q1 2018: Analysts

While Huawei has registered an increase in the global market share as well as smartphone shipments in the first quarter of 2019, Samsung’s and Apple’s have dropped, two popular market research firms, Counterpoint Research and International Data Corporation (IDC), have said. This comes at a time when Q1 2019 smartphone shipments are falling (of 5% as per Counterpoint, and 6.6% according to IDC) year-over-year (YoY) - making it the sixth consecutive quarter that has seen a decline in smartphone shipments.

According to Counterpoint Research, Huawei’s share in the global smartphone market reached its highest ever level of 17 percent during Q1 2019. Huawei overtook Apple as the second largest selling smartphone brand in the quarter as its volumes increased by nearly 50 percent YoY. Although, Samsung’s share decreased, it grabbed a market share of 21 percent maintaining the top spot. Apple was able to capture 12 percent of share globally. Meanwhile, IDC says that Samsung took 23.1 percent, Huawei captured 19 percent and Apple got 11.7 percent share.

Recently, Huawei announced its business results for the first quarter of 2019 and said that the company generated CNY 179.7 billion in revenue - an increase of 39 percent (YoY). The company's net profit margin in the quarter was about 8 percent, and it shipped 59 million smartphones. Samsung, meanwhile, registered 56.9 percent year-on-year decline with net profits in the January-March period falling to 5.04 trillion won ($4.3 billion) -- the lowest since the third quarter of 2016. Apple is yet to publish its earnings report.

Huawei became the second largest smartphone brand by shipments without a significant presence in an important market like the US. It was also the fastest growing brand among the top 10. Moreover, only Chinese brands Huawei, Oppo and Vivo were able to register a growth in the first quarter of 2019.

“At this pace, we expect Huawei to remain ahead of Apple at the end of 2019. What has helped Huawei is the pace of its innovations. It was the first to introduce features like reverse wireless charging, on-board AI, advanced camera, and more. A dual-brand (HONOR) strategy has helped Huawei build a youth connect and gain market share in a sluggish Chinese market. Huawei is now a match for Samsung in smartphone hardware. Like Samsung and Apple, Huawei also is becoming increasingly vertically integrated. We believe it is Huawei that Samsung should be worrying about rather than Apple,” Shobhit Srivastava, Research Analyst at Counterpoint Research, said in a statement.

“It is becoming increasingly clear that Huawei is laser focused on growing its stature in the world of mobile devices, with smartphones being its lead horse. The overall smartphone market continues to be challenged in almost all areas, yet Huawei was able to grow shipments by 50 percent, not only signifying a clear number two in terms of market share but also closing the gap on the market leader Samsung. This new ranking of Samsung, Huawei, and Apple is very likely what we'll see when 2019 is all said and done,” Ryan Reith, Program Vice President with IDC's Worldwide Mobile Device Trackers, added.

Global smartphone shipment decline:

While, Counterpoint Research says that the overall smartphone shipments fell to 345 million units from 361.6 million units registering a 5 percent decline, IDC found that smartphone vendors shipped a total of 310.8 million units from 332.7 million units in 1Q19.

“The global smartphone market showed no sign of recovery in Q1 2019. The rate of decline came down, particularly in February, due to inventory correction by some brands and the production halt during Chinese New Year. Another reason for the decline is lengthening replacement cycles, especially in the premium segment. The replacement rate for iPhones is reaching close to 36 months, while the replacement rate for premium Android devices is closing in at 30 months. This can be attributed to the higher quality of devices, increasing average selling price (ASP), and the lack of innovative technology,” Tarun Pathak, Associate Director at Counterpoint Research, said about the smartphone shipment decline.

Anthony Scarsella, Research Manager with IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, echoed Pathak’s comments saying, “Consumers continue to hold on to their phones longer than before as newer higher priced models offer little incentive to shell out top dollar to upgrade. Moreover, the pending arrival of 5G handsets could have consumers waiting until both the networks and devices are ready for prime time in 2020.”

Brandwise segregation:

Counterpoint: Samsung recorded an increase in revenue as Galaxy S10 flagship smartphones did better than Galaxy S9 at the time of launch. Apple iPhone shipments declined year-over-year for the second consecutive quarter. It is increasingly difficult for Apple to grow ASP’s and China remains a declining market for the company. iPhone XR was the best-selling iPhone during the quarter. Xiaomi smartphone shipments declined annually as it faces competition in home market, though it continued to do well in India. All the brands of the BBK Group: Oppo, Realme, Vivo and OnePlus, registered growth during the quarter.

IDC: Samsung saw volumes drop 8.1 percent in 1Q19 with shipments of 71.9 million. The South Korean company retained the top spot, but Huawei is continuing to close the gap between them. Apple‘s shipments dropped to 36.4 million units representing a staggering 30.2 percent decline from last year. Xiaomi experienced a decline in volumes of 25.0 million, down 10.2 percent YoY. the brand remains strong in China, India, and Indonesia. Vivo returned to the top 5 of the smartphone market with volumes of 23.2 million and a market share of 7.5 percent. Its sister company Oppo tied with Vivo in terms of market share, and shipped shipped 23.1 million units.

From a geographic standpoint, China is likely to see things heating up in the remainder of 2019. The US market felt the worst of the downturn in the first quarter. Smartphone volumes declined 15 percent YoY during the quarter as replacement rates continue to slow in one of the world's largest markets. “Apple iPhone challenges contributed to the exceptionally poor 1Q19 in the US, but they were not alone as Samsung, LG, and other top vendors also witnessed declining volumes during the quarter,” IDC said.

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