Apple MacBook Air 2019 is cheaper but gets slower SSD: Report

Apple just refreshed the MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro along with dropping the price of the world’s favourite ultrabook, but that $100 drop has come at a price. According to the report by Consomac, Apple’s price drop has come by the way of using a slower SSD (solid-state drive) on the MacBook Air.

According to the report, Consomac tested the 2018 and the 2019 versions of the MacBook Air in their lab. Both the variants came with 256GB of SSD storage on board. They tested the machines using Blackmagic Disk Speed Test, a utility created by Blackmagic (the company, not the occult) in order for creators to understand whether their storage was fast enough to work with the footage coming out of Blackmagic’s various cameras. Using this test, Consomac found that the 2018 Macbook Air’s SSD clocked a speed of 920 MB/s write and 2 GB/s read. The newer MacBook Air from 2019 clocks 1 GB/s write and 1.3 GB/s read. The new SSDs are a hair faster when it comes to write speeds, but quite a bit slower when it comes to read speeds. We reviewed the MacBook Air 2018 with the 128GB SSD and clocked almost 2GB/s read speeds, but the write speeds were roughly 650MB/s.

According to the report, there is a difference in the SSDs being used on the two MacBook Air variants; they are definitely different. However, the new MacBook Air’s storage is still fast enough for most users. The MacBook Air isn’t anyway meant for 4K video editing or any task really that requires super-fast read-write speeds. For most users who turn to the MacBook Air for its incredible battery life and amazing portability, the speed of the SSD is still good enough. It's not really an issue, especially seeing how Apple has made the machine cheaper as well.

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Honor 9X Pro confirmed to feature pop-up camera, goes up for pre-registrations in China

Honor is gearing up to launch the Honor 9X Pro smartphone in China on July 23 and it has already revealed the handset’s rear panel in a teaser image. However, ahead of the official announcement, the handset is also showed off from the front as it goes up for pre-registration in the country. A handset is showed off from the rear and the front. There is a triple rear camera setup, along with a gradient design resembling an ‘X’ and as per the ongoing rumours, Honor 9X Pro is supposed to be the handset with triple rear cameras while the standard Honor 9X is said to come equipped with a dual rear-camera setup.

The Honor 9X Pro is also shown off from the front and as you can see in the image below, it features an almost bezel-less design without any notch. This is thanks to the removal front cameras from the top-bezel and housing them in a pop-up camera. While there are no additional details revealed by the pre-registration image of the handset, some additional details about it are known via its TENAA listing. As per the TENAA listing, the Honor 9X has model numbers HLK-TL00 and HLK-AL00, while the Honor 9X Pro has the model number HLK-AL10. The phones are officially confirmed by Honor to launch running on the latest Kirin 810 7nm chipset.

As for other hardware details, the TENAA listing hints at the presence of a 48MP rear camera, an 8MP ultra-wide lens and a 2MP camera on the back. It might feature a 16MP front-facing sensor in the pop-up module. The standard Honor 9X is speculated to get a similar dual camera setup on the back, except for the 8MP ultra-wide lens. 

The Honor 9X could be announced with up to 8GB RAM and 256GB of internal storage. It is rumoured to come equipped with a 6.59-inch LCD display and could be backed by a 3900mAh battery. Both the phones are expected to run on Android 9 Pie based EMUI. 

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Google Pixel 4 spotted in the wild, may come with Soli radar chip

After Google revealed the camera design of the Pixel 4, the smartphone started to pop up more frequently in random places. In another such incident, the Google Pixel 4 has allegedly been spotted in the London Underground. Although the phone is disguised with a thick back case to hide the camera bulge, the placement of the lenses and the LED flash confirms the camera setup that we have already seen in the official image shared by Google. We can see a main sensor along with a lens, which is suspected to be a 16MP telephoto lens. There is a spectral sensor above and a flash below the lens setup.

Additionally, famous tipster Steve Hemmerstoffer (aka onleaks) has shared an image on Twitter speculating that the Google Pixel 4 might come equipped with a Soli radar chip. Reportedly, the Project Soli has been in development since 2015, and could debut in the Pixel 4. The technology has already got a special FCC permit for testing “as it needed to broadcast an electromagnetic signal more powerful than what is currently needed.” It apparently allows users to use subtle finger and hand movements to control several functions.

9to5google says that the tech, developed by a team led by Ivan Poupyrev at Google’s Advanced Technology and Projects Group, can sense the position of a user’s hands and can let him/her control virtual knobs, buttons, and sliders without touching the device. “Soli can sense the tiniest motion and can work all the way from smartwatches to TVs — to pause, play, scrub, or change the volume,” the report said. We have already seen a similar technology in the LG G8 ThinQ smartphone that was launched at MWC, Barcelona. LG calls this feature “Air Motion.”

Just a look at that mysterious hollow on top right inside of #Pixel4XL front panel. Knowing it's pretty deep nd seems to be no glass transparency, it's likely there to accommodate Soli Radar components IMO. Again, JUST AN ASSUMPTION based on that hollow location, size nd shape

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Qualcomm announces overclocked Snapdragon 855 Plus, debuting first on the Asus ROG Phone II

Gaming phones so far have been going through an existential crisis. All of them come with the same flagship processor as every other flagship phone, leading many to question what extra are they getting in exchange for the premium. Now, Qualcomm has announced an overclocked variant of the Snapdragon 855 called the Snapdragon 855 Plus. The upgraded chipset will debut on the upcoming Asus ROG Phone II.

The Snapdragon 855 Plus will offer 15 percent boost in graphics rendering and a CPU that can go as high as 2.96GHz. Presently, the Snapdragon 855 can do 2.84GHz. Qualcomm states the new chip is aimed mostly at gaming phones and devices that will support 5G.

While it remains to be seen whether that has any impact in real-world performance, the fact that it is debuting on the Asus ROG Phone II holds promise. Last year, the ROG Phone introduced a speed-binned Snapdragon 845 that seemingly offered better performance, at least on paper. Asus, however, did not provide any additional details on its upcoming gaming flagship.

Most high-end and flagship Android phones now ship with the Snapdragon 855 that Qualcomm announced last year in December. The Snapdragon 855 is built on a 7nm manufacturing process and features a tri-cluster architecture for the first time. The regular Snapdragon 855 has one prime core clocked at 2.84GHz and three mid-cores clocked at 2.42GHz along with four efficiency cores at 1.8GHz. In the new SoC, the prime core is now clocked at 2.96 Ghz ensuring faster CPU performance. Furthermore, the Adreno 640 GPU on the Snapdragon 855 Plus is also clocked faster, ensuring faster rendering of graphics.

Gaming phones are on the rise and the fact that Qualcomm has come out with a special chipset that offers better performance is a testament to the fact. It remains to be seen, however, how many takers will be there for the overclocked SoC considering there really isn’t anything out there right now that can stress out the regular Snapdragon 855, let alone an overclocked version of it.

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Sony WH-XB900N headphones with noise cancellation, built-in Alexa and Google Assistant launched in India

While Bose recently announced its high-end Noise Cancelling Headphone 700, Sony is focusing more on the mid-range audio device segment. Sony has launched its new WH-XB900N headphone in India, which borrows some great features that we have already seen on the company’s flagship WH-1000XM3 headphones (review). The new headphones come with Digital Noise Cancellation, touch-based controls, and are touted to last 30 hours on a single charge. In addition, there’s the Quick Attention Mode that enables one to lower the music volume by cupping the right earcup to let ambient noise and conversations in. 

The Sony WH-XB900N headphones come equipped with a pair of 40mm neodymium drivers, which are said to produce a frequency range between 3Hz and 20,000Hz. The headphone makes use of Sense Engine feature, which enables controlling music via touch. One can swipe up or down on the headphone’s right earcup to increase or lower sound levels, while swiping right or left will change tracks. The device is equipped with a Type-C port, which enables Quick Charge that is touted to deliver up to one hour of battery life with ten minutes of charging. Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa are also integrated, which means one can use voice commands to complete tasks supported by these digital assistants. 

The new headphones by Sony are priced at Rs 16,990 and will be available for purchase from July 15 in Black and Blue colours. One will get a carry pouch for the headphones, which are foldable, along with a USB Type-C cable and a 3.5mm audio dongle for using the headphone in wired mode. They can also be connected with Sony’s Headphones Connect App for enhanced customisation. It should be noted that the total charge time of the headphone is said to be around seven hours and that it connects with devices over the Bluetooth 4.2 protocol. 

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Huawei 9X gets first official teaser, to come with 48MP camera, Kirin 810, and more

The Honor 9X is reportedly arriving next week, but Honor has already revealed the design of the back panel of the phone. The official teaser shows the midranger flaunting a three-camera setup on the rear. It will be launched along with an elder sibling, the Honor 9X Pro. According to the TENAA listing, the Honor 9X has model numbers HLK-TL00 and HLK-AL00, while the Honor 9X Pro has the model number HLK-AL10. These phones will allegedly be powered by the latest Kirin 810 7nm chipset.

According to the rumours the Honor 9X/9X Pro will sport a pop-up camera module, a side mounted fingerprint scanner, and more than one cameras at the back. As for the 9X Pro, TENAA certification reveals that it will feature a 48-megapixel rear camera, 2-megapixel secondary camera and an 8-megapixel ultra-wide lens at the back, and a 16MP selfie-shooter housed in the pop-up module. Honor 9X could have the same camera setup except for the 8MP ultra-wide lens on the rear.

The Honor 9X could have up to 8GB RAM, 256GB of internal storage and a microSD slot for up to 512GB of more storage. Other rumours also claim that the Honor 9X Pro could have a 6.59-inch LCD panel. More rumoured specs include a battery with at least 3900mAh capacity and a weight of 206g. The phones could come with Android 9-based EMUI 9.0 (or probably 9.1) out of the box. Also, the phone’s footprint could be 163.1x77.2x8.8 mm.

On the connectivity front, the Honor 9X/9X Pro could come with Dual 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 ac (2.4GHz + 5GHz), Bluetooth 5.0 LE, GPS + GLONASS, and USB Type-C. The phones are expected to come in a range of colours.

The Honor 9X and the Honor 9X Pro are all set to launch next week in China. The scheduled launch date is July 23.

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Harmony OS: Huawei patents name of its new Android replacement

After the US put business sanctions with American firms on hold, Huawei started to look for an alternative for the Android OS for its phones and Windows for its laptops. Previously, it was reported that the company was developing its own OS and had applied to trademark the ‘HongMeng’ name. In the latest development, the company has now registered the name “Harmony” with the European Union Intellectual Property Office.

The agency received the application on July 12 and it is currently under examination. The application reads, “Downloadable operating system programs; Recorded operating system programs; Mobile operating systems; Computer operating systems; Downloadable computer operating programs and computer operating systems.” The “mobile operating systems” and “computer operating systems” mention suggests that this could be a software that will run Huawei phones and laptops.

Earlier this year, Andrew Williamson, Vice President, Huawei Technologies Public Affairs, said in an interview that the company is in the process of potentially launching a replacement for Android. “Huawei is in the process of potentially launching a replacement. It’s not something Huawei wants. We’re very happy of being part of the Android family, but HongMeng is being tested, mostly in China,” a Reuters report quoted Williamson as saying.

For those who are unaware, Google blocked Huawei’s access to its Android ecosystem because of US President Donald Trump Administration blacklisting the Chinese-based company. The new OS was developed in response to this step and was claimed to be faster than Android. It was also reported that the company was in talks with Aptoide to use it as an alternative to the Google Play Store. Following Google, Micorosft also removed Huawei's access to Windows ecosystem.

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