Gmail users can now enjoy dark mode on Android 10, iOS 131211 devices

In the past few months, Google has been slowly but steadily equipping many of its smartphone apps with a dark theme in order to complement the system-wide dark mode that was introduced in the latest version of Android and iOS a couple of months ago. The latest app in Google’s long list of productivity apps to get dark mode is Gmail. You can enable dark mode in Gmail right now if your phone is running Android 10. Oh, and it also works on Apple devices running iOS versions 13, 12, and 11.

If you’re on a phone that’s running Android 10, which is the latest version of Google’s popular mobile operating system, the dark mode feature will be enabled automatically in Gmail if dark mode is turned on at a system-level (i.e., in system settings). If not, you can always enable it manually by pulling out the hamburger menu in the app, scrolling all the way down to tap Settings, visiting General settings, and finally selecting Theme. It’s the first item in the list. ‘System default’ is the default option but you can always override it.

The steps to switch over to the dark side are similar in iOS. If you have the dark theme enabled at a system level on iOS 13 (i.e., in Settings > Display & Brightness > Appearance), then you should see Gmail appear in a dark theme the next time you launch it. If you want to enable it manually within the app, you can open up the hamburger menu from the top left corner, tap Settings, tap Theme, and then select Dark. It’s the same process if you’ve got an Apple device running iOS 12 or 11.

Since Google is still in the process of updating the Gmail app for Android and iOS, there’s a chance you’ll be forced to wait for a couple of days before getting to use dark mode. If your phone isn’t running Android 10, then the wait to see a manual dark mode option will be longer still as Google hasn’t mentioned anything about dark mode in Gmail for Android 9 Pie and older in its G Suite blog post. Instagram, by the way, received dark mode support on iOS 13 and Android 10 earlier this month. You can read more about that here.

from Latest Technology News https://ift.tt/2WrBkmP

Google Messages RCS arrives in India, heres why its important

Rich Communication Services (RCS) is the next generation of an aging SMS protocol, which has been here since the early days of the Global System for Mobile communications (GSM). The SMS protocol is about 27 years old. As for RCS, it offers advanced features such as file transfer, typing indicators, multimedia and more. This makes it similar to iMessage. 

Google has been working on RCS protocol to create its “Jibe Cloud” platform since ever. However, it has faced delays in rolling out RCS messaging on Android due to issues with getting carriers on board because RCS adoption will cut into the SMS revenue. To recall, GSMA released a Universal Profile for RCS in 2016 and two OS makers, 47 mobile operators, and 11 smartphone makers pledged to support RCS. 

RCS Messaging will allow users to send rich, verified messages, which means messages will be able to carry more information and enable users to send photos, videos and audio messages to one another. Users will be able to make video calls directly from the messaging app and won’t have to rely on third-party software. Further, RCS will remove the restriction of 160 character limit currently found in SMS. 

As for security, RCS messages are sent with client-to-server encryption. The protocol is also said to prevent spam messages from reaching your device. This is because to send a message via RCS, a company will have to go through a brand verification process. Received RCS messages will have the company's name in the sender info, rather than just a mobile phone number. 

RCS has arrived in India. As of now, RCS has been spotted working on Vodafone SIM. We tested the Jio SIM, but the feature is not yet available on the operator. To enable RCS in Google Messages, you need to go to Settings > Chat Features and toggle on the “Enable Chat Features.”

from Latest Technology News https://ift.tt/34bUD6s

iOS 132, iPadOS 132 update adds Deep Fusion mode in camera, AirPods Pro support and more

Apple is rolling out iOS 13.2, iPadOS 13.2 and tvOS 13.2 for iPhones, iPads and Apple TVs respectively. The new update brings new features like the Deep Fusion camera mode, new emojis, compatibility with the new AirPods Pro and more. The update is available for iPhone 6s and above.

Apple has been releasing a slew of updates ever since iOS 13 first came out in September. It was riddled with bugs and the iOS 13.2 update fixes a lot of them. While updating to the latest iOS is always optional, if you plan on using the new AirPods Pro, there’s no other choice. AirPods Pro are compatible with devices running at least iOS 13.2, iPadOS 13.2, watchOS 6.1, tvOS 13.2, or macOS Catalina 10.15.1.

New features in iOS 13.2 and iPadOS 13.2

Choose whether to share Siri recordings with Apple

The new update gives you the choice to share Siri recordings with Apple. This comes after Apple received backlash over its decision to share Siri recordings with third-party contractors to improve the service. This is despite Apple trying to position Siri as a privacy-friendly alternative to Amazon’s Alexa and Google Assistant.

After the update, users will prompted to choose whether they want to share Siri recordings with Apple. You can change it later in the Settings.

AirPods Pro support and Announce Messages

As mentioned earlier, iOS 13.2 and iPadOS 13.2 brings support for the new active noise-cancellation enabled AirPods Pro along with the Announce Messages feature for Siri. The update essentially adds the ability to enable or disable ANC from the Control Center. Furthermore, second-gen AirPods will be able to announce incoming messages via Siri without having to unlock your iPhone.

Deep Fusion computational Photography

One of the more significant new addition is the Deep Fusion mode in the camera. It’s Apple’s answer to Google’s HDR+ which Senior Vice President Phil Schiller called ‘computational photography mad science’. The feature works in the background and gets activated only in medium-light settings. Deep Fusion captures the same image in different exposure in rapid succession. Then they are fused using machine learning through a ‘pixel-by-pixel’ analysis of the images. Essentially, the feature combines the best parts of the series of images into one to reduce noise, improve sharpness and boost details.

The feature takes four images, out of which three are normal and another is a long-exposure. The camera app applies four processing steps on the three normal photos and merges them with the long-exposure shot which results in the final image. The feature is similar to what Google does with its HDR or other OEMs with their smart HDR algorithms.

However, you will not be able to see the feature at work. Just know that it is working in the background. It’s not something you can turn on or off and phone will decide when to use the feature depending on the amount of light available.

59 new emojis

With every new feature update, Apple introduces new emoji for users. The 13.2 update brings 59 new ones and over 70 if you count gender versions and over 200 if you factor in skin tone. These include wheelchair or with a cane, a bionic arm, swimsuits, ice cube and more.

Smart home features with HomeKit

The new update also brings HomeKit Security Video which records short videos of people, animals, cars or other objects that comes in front of your HomeKit-enabled security cameras. The update also brings support for HomeKit-enabled routers.

Bug fixes, security updates

The new update fixes bugs that popped up with the previous update like being unable to pull up the on-screen keyboard when trying to perform a search, showing phone numbers in messages instead of contact names, vanishing notes from the Notes app, and more. All of these have been fixed.

from Latest Technology News https://ift.tt/2WmSS3p

Hideo Kojimas Death Stranding is finally coming to PC in 2020, no longer a PS4 exclusive

As soon as Death Stranding was announced by famed video game creator Hideo Kojima, it was assumed that the game would be a PlayStation 4 exclusive. After all, the game was releasing on the console and most of the marketing was centered around the PlayStation experience. And even though PlayStation players will receive the game on November 8, it is clear from an official tweet by Kojima Productions that Death Stranding will definitely be coming to the PC in the summer of 2020. 

Thanks to all of you who have been supporting #DEATHSTRANDING! DEATH STRANDING release on PS4 is November 8, 2019!! Furthermore, KOJIMA PRODUCTIONS is happy to announce that DEATH STRANDING will be coming to PC in early summer of 2020!!#kojimaproductions #deathstrandingpc pic.twitter.com/Sk4clWWY1X

— Kojima Productions (@KojiPro2015_EN) October 28, 2019

 

To be fair, it does look like more publishers are waking up to the fact that there is money to be made by porting console games to the PC. As both a console and a gaming PC owner (throw in a Nintendo Switch in there as well), this makes me incredibly happy. Not only do I get to play the game on a console and enjoy all the conveniences of said platform, but I get to tweak the game settings to my liking on the PC. Who knows? We may even get mods for the game when it does ship to the PC. The only drawback here is that you’ll have to purchase the game twice if you want to experience it on both platforms. 

If the trailers and clips are to be believed, Death Stranding is going to be one hell of a deliveryman simulator. Built on the Decima Engine, the game looks to be a complex story that, in typica Kojima fashion, will feature famous celebrities in important roles in the game. From Mads Mikkelsen, Guillermo Del Toro, Margaret Qualley, Léa Seydoux and even director Nicolas Winding Refn, the game features all these actors in important roles. 

We will be reviewing the game soon so watch this space for more news and info on Death Stranding. 

 

from Latest Technology News https://ift.tt/2WjAhWa

2020 Apple iPhone models could come with 120Hz refresh rate display

According to a new report by DigiTimes, smartphone displays in 2020 are expected to start using high refresh rate displays. This is supposed to include the iPhone, which is suggested to ship with a ProMotion display for 2020 models. As of now, all iPhones use a display panel with a 60Hz refresh rate, with the iPad Pro sporting a 120Hz display which Apple calls the ProMotion display.

High refresh rate displays are starting to appear in smartphones a lot more frequently as 2019 draws to a close. Typically, a main-stay for gaming, high refresh rate displays also make the user interface a lot smoother, which is most notable while scrolling. For games, however, the display’s refresh rate only comes into play if the smartphone manufacturer and the game developer have both enabled support for the high refresh rate, case in point being the OnePlus 7T Pro, which has a 90Hz display but does not run any game at that refresh rate.

Traditionally, high refresh rates were also limited to IPS panels, however, the Asus ROG Phone II became the first smartphone to ship with a 120Hz OLED display earlier this year. Since Apple only uses OLED for their flagship iPhones, and given that 120Hz OLED panels now exist, it is entirely possible for Apple to ship next year’s flagship devices with a high refresh rate display.

The current iPhones, with their 60Hz refresh rate displays, are some of the first to get 60fps support for games. In fact, there are a few games that even support 120Hz for the iPad Pro, leading to the logical conclusion that if next year’s iPhone was to indeed feature a 120Hz refresh rate display, game support for it would not be far behind.

However, there are challenges to the high refresh rate bandwagon. These OLED displays are extremely power-hungry. We noted in our review of the OnePlus 7 Pro that the battery life was significantly reduced when using the phone with the display set to 90Hz. Asus circumvented this problem by strapping a 6000mAh battery to the ROG Phone II. It would be interesting to see how Apple tackles the problem of power draw that comes with having a high refresh rate display, even if its OLED.

from Latest Technology News https://ift.tt/2q4nhaB

Xiaomi Smartwatch renders reveal Apple Watch-like design, GPS, WiFi, eSIM support

Realme may be bringing a fitness band to India sometime soon but Xiaomi has bigger plans globally, namely, an Apple Watch-rivalling smartwatch. Xiaomi recently confirmed plans to launch this smartwatch along with the Mi Note 10 (CC9 Pro in China) on November 5. But we’re already getting our first look at the new wearable from renders released by Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun through a report published by Gizmochina. And by the looks of it, the new Xiaomi smartwatch scarily resembles the popular Apple Watch to a great length.

Just by looking at the renders from the report filed by Gizmochina, it’s easy to tell that Xiaomi’s new smartwatch bears a design that’s very similar to that of the Apple Watch. In fact, it wouldn’t be outrageous to call the new wearable a slightly taller Apple Watch, in terms of appearance alone. We say this because it appears to sport the same type of rounded rectangle frame with a single crown on the top-right edge and a power button just below it.

The renders from the report also give us a quick look at what’s inside the new Xiaomi smartwatch: radios for Wi-Fi, NFC, and GPS. We also find a Qualcomm-developed chip in the middle of the mainboard, which is most likely based on the Snapdragon Wear 2500 Platform. There’s also an internal battery of unknown capacity, a card slot (for either storage or physical SIM), and a module for eSIM support. We’re not entirely sure at the moment if the watch will support only eSIM or a physical SIM as well.

The Apple Watch Series 5, which is the current crop of Apple’s smartwatch, currently sells in India at a starting price of Rs 40,900. The Apple Watch lookalike from Xiaomi, however, is expected to cost a lot less when it goes on sale in the coming weeks. Realme, on the other hand, is expected to bring a Xiaomi Mi Band-rivalling fitness band to the country sometime soon. You can read more about that here.

Inline and cover image courtesy: Gizmochina

from Latest Technology News https://ift.tt/32WdBOc

Samsung jumps on the slowfie bandwagon, will soon offer front camera support for slow motion videos in Galaxy S10: Report

Remember how Apple touted slow-motion selfies in its new iPhones? Well, it looks like Samsung is getting a piece of that pie. According to a report by Sammobile, the Samsung Galaxy S10 series is receiving a new software update that is introducing the ability to take slow motion videos using the front camera on the phone. Other new features include a function called Auto Hotspot, which allows users to share their internet with other devices that are logged into the same Samsung account. Further, users will now get a Media and Devices button on the notification shade itself, thereby allowing users to control any connected external devices. The update is also said to offer improved fingerprint recognition and the October security patch. As per the report, the update is currently rolling out in Germany and Switzerland, but it should make its way to other regions soon.

Are ‘slowfies’ that big of a deal to warrant another bout of tech one-upmanship? We aren’t the right people to ask, to be honest, since we take so little selfies. But the feature is still relatively young and with the rise of platforms like TikTok, we might see it being put to use in creative ways. Only time will tell if it becomes the next must-have feature or if it will go the way of glasses-free 3D displays.

Samsung Galaxy S10 users can also look forward to getting support for Samsung DeX for the PC. For those who may not be familiar with the feature, DeX for PC allows users to wirelessly connect their PC to their mobile device to see notifications, send and receive messages, and review recent photos. The update is also said to introduce certain camera features introduced in the Galaxy Note 10 series such as Live Focus videos and AR Doodle. Android Police reports that the update is rolling out in the US right now, and should make its way to other markets soon.

from Latest Technology News https://ift.tt/2BTqblu