MSI announces new laptops with Intel 10th Gen CPUs in India starting at Rs 59,990

MSI has launched a slew of new series of laptops in India. The Taiwanese PC maker's new range consists of three new series, namely the P Series, Modern Series, and Prestige Series. Available in multiple screen sizes, the new laptops employ Intel's 10th Gen Core series CPUs. According to the company, the new range will be distributed solely by Ingram Micro and sold exclusively on Flipkart. The new range starts at Rs 59,990 and goes all the way up to Rs 2,69,990.

“India is one of MSI's most important market [sic] which has huge potential for content-creation. With the launch of the new content creation series in India, we at MSI, aspire to leverage innovative technology combined with portability to unleash the creative potential across the country and transform the way content is created. We are also excited to introduce the exclusive True Pixel technology which delivers the best-possible hardware solution combined with seamless software,” commented Green, Chang-Ching Lin, Regional Marketing Head at MSI.

P Series

The P Series consists of the P75 Creator (17.3-inch 4K variant) and P65 Creator (17.3-inch 4K and 15.6-inch Full HD variants). The two models are powered by up to an Intel 9th Gen Core i9 CPU with an Nvidia GeForce 2070 graphics card with Max-Q Design. System RAM is 16GB and storage comes in the form of a 1TB PCIe NVMe solid-state drive. Inbuilt features in the two models include fingerprint scanner and Thunderbolt 3. The P Series from MSI starts at Rs 1,49,990 and goes up to Rs 2,69,990.

Modern Series

MSI's new Modern Series represents the company's Thin and Light laptop line-up. Available in 14-inch (Modern 14) and 15.6-inch (Modern 15) variants, they come powered by up to an Intel 10th Gen Core i7 CPU, Nvidia GeForce MX250 GPU, 8GB of RAM, and up to 512GB of storage on a PCIe NVMe solid-state drive. Clad in a MIL-STD 810G-tested frame, they feature proprietary True Colour and Nahimic 3 Audio technologies to enhance display and sound quality. The Modern Series from MSI starts at Rs 59,990 and goes up to Rs 89,990.

Prestige Series

MSI's new Prestige Series is similar to the Modern Series but the top-end model comes with a 4K panel and an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 graphics card, along with a fingerprint scanner and support for Thunderbolt 3. While the Modern Series delivers a claimed battery life of up to 10 hours, the Prestige Series delivers a claimed battery life of up to 16 hours on a single charge. Like the Modern Series, the Prestige Series uses a proprietary Cooler Boost 3 technology for three-pipe cooling.

The Prestige Series consists of the Prestige 14 (14-inch screen) and Prestige 15 (15.6-inch screen). The models are powered by up to an Intel 10th Gen Core i7 CPU, 8GB of RAM, and up to 1TB of storage on a PCIe NVMe solid-state drive. While the Prestige 14 comes with an Nvidia GeForce MX250 GPU, the Prestige 15 comes with a more powerful Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 GPU with 4GB of video RAM. The Prestige Series from MSI starts at Rs 99,990 and goes up to Rs 1,49,990.

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Smart speakers vulnerable to light commands that can be used to shop online, open garage doors and more

Using voice commands to control devices is nothing new as most of us are now more or less used to getting answers from a smart assistant on our phones and smart speakers. Google Home and Amazon Echo smart speakers are also commonplace and their market share is steadily increasing since they offer increased convenience of controlling other smart devices via voice. Of course, there are a multitude of privacy concerns when you have a device that keeps a virtual ear out for your commands and sometimes ‘inadvertently’ eavesdrops during your talks, but what if we told you that there might even possibly be a bigger threat looming? 

Researchers at the University of Electro-Communications (Tokyo) and the University of Michigan have found an unconventional way to communicate with devices that work on voice commands. Takeshi Sugawara, Benjamin Cyr, Sara Rampazzi, Daniel Genkin and Kevin Fu discovered something called Light Commands, which employs modulating an electric signal in the intensity of a light beam. The light beam is aimed directly at the microphone of a smart speaker and can be used by attackers to trick a device’s mic into producing electrical signals as if they are receiving genuine audio, which resembles voice commands given by a user.

This means that an attacker can potentially use a laser to deliver commands directly to a speaker and this is a worrying critical flaw. As for the distance from where this flaw can be exploited, the researchers were able to deliver commands in a 110-meter long hallway. They used a commercially available telephoto lens to precisely target a speaker’s mic and mounted both, a laser and the speaker, on tripods to increase accuracy. The test conducted by the researchers worked on some of the most popular devices like Google Home, Home Mini, Amazon Echo Plus 1st and 2nd Gen, Echo, Echo Dot 2nd and 3rd Gen, Echo Show 5, iPhone XR, iPad 6th Gen, Samsung Galaxy S9, and the Google Pixel 2. 

While there is no mitigation for the vulnerability, the researchers do mention that the manufacturers of such smart speakers can use sensor fusion techniques. This entails using audio from two mics instead of one so that it is difficult for an attacker to use two laser beams precisely and a command picked up by only one mic can be discarded as an injected command. 

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Alleged Vivo S5 specifications leaked ahead of November 14 launch

Vivo confirmed that it will introduce a new smartphone, the Vivo S5 in its S-series. The phone is all set to launch in China on November 14. However, an official render of Vivo S5 has appeared on the official website, giving us a clear look at the front panel with a hole-punch design. Moreover, full specifications of Vivo S5 have reportedly leaked online, thanks to a TENAA listing.

A Vivo phone with model number V1932A/T has popped up on a TENAA listing. It reveals that the Vivo S5 could feature a 6.44-inch AMOLED display with full HD resolution of 1080 x 2400 pixels and an aspect ratio of 20:9. There is a punch-hole notch and it is said that the phone’s display is integrated with a fingerprint sensor. Vivo S5 is tipped to be powered by an octa-core processor that clocks at 2.3GHz. It could be the Qualcomm Snapdragon 712 chipset. 

The Vivo S5 is expected to come equipped with 8GB RAM and 128GB/256GB of internal storage. According to the listing, the phone runs Android 9 Pie. Further, the listing reveals that Vivo S5 could have a penta rear camera setup: 48MP + 8MP + 5MP + 2MP + 5MP. However, the other model, Vivo V1932T, sports a triple rear camera setup of 48MP + 8MP + 5MP. There is also a 32MP front camera for selfie needs. Hence, it appears that Vivo is planning to launch two variants of the Vivo S5. 

Vivo S5 is expected to pack a 4010mAh battery with support for 22.5W rapid charging technology. Dimensions of the Vivo V1932A/T are 157.9 x 73.92 x 8.6mm, and it weighs 188 grams. 

According to previous leaks, the Vivo S5 could be made available in Blue, Green and Pink colours with a gradient finish. The device is rumoured to launch at less than 2000 Yuan, which roughly converts to Rs 20,000.

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Samsung Galaxy A51 back panel leaked, revealing key details

Samsung Galaxy A-series has been part of a critical growth factor for the company in 2019 and it appears that Samsung is looking to apply the same next year. The Samsung Galaxy A51 back panel has leaked on the internet and gives us our first look at what the device could be capable of. It has revealed an L-shaped setup for the previously speculated, quad-camera setup. 

The same leak also reveals that Samsung Galaxy A51 will come equipped with a 3.5mm headphone jack. Further, it is expected to have dual SIM slot and a USB Type-C connector. Earlier, it was also reported that the Galaxy A51 had appeared on Geekbench. A smartphone with model number SM-A515F, which is claimed to be Galaxy A51 was spotted on the listing. It scored 323 points in the single-core and 1,185 points in the multi-core tests.  

According to Geekbench listing, the Samsung Galaxy A51 could be powered by the 10nm FinFet Exynos 9611 SoC, paired with a Mali-G72 MP3 GPU. It is tipped to run Android 10 with One UI 2.0 on top. Further, the phone is expected to come equipped with 4GB RAM + 64GB/128GB of internal storage. 

On the optics front, as mentioned earlier, Samsung Galaxy A51 is said to sport a quad red camera setup: a 48MP primary sensor a 48MP camera alongside 12MP ultrawide lens, 12MP telephoto shooter and a 5MP depth sensor. It could also have a 32MP selfie shooter. The smartphone may arrive in silver, black, and blue colour options.

There is no official word on the existence of Galaxy A51. However, the smartphone is expected to launch in the first quarter of 2020 in India. More details are expected to emerge in the meantime. Moreover, the Samsung Galaxy A51 could be priced above Rs 25,000.

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Xiaomi Mi Air Purifier 3 launched in India with 22 percent improved efficiency, touch-enabled OLED display

The winter is here and so is the unprecedented decline in air quality across most major Indian cities. Just recently, the Air Quality Index or AQI breached the 999 range in the Delhi NCR region, which is quite alarming and even though the air quality is slightly better now, one still needs an air purifier to breathe clean air when indoors. Keeping this in mind, Xiaomi has quietly announced its Mi Air Purifier 3 in India, which succeeds the Mi Air Purifier 2S that it launched last year. The new air purifier comes equipped with a touch-enabled OLED display and is said to be 22 percent more efficient over its predecessor. 

Mi Air Purifier 3 specifications

The Mi Air Purifier 3 follows the same tall, rectangular box shape design as its predecessor with the air exhaust on top. The device sucks in polluted air from all sides at the bottom, which passes through a ‘True’ HEPA filter, which is said to be capable of capturing 99.97 percent of pollutants, down to 0.3 µm in size. However, the company has not revealed the grade of the filter being used but even without knowing that, the device is expected to work well in moderately polluted areas. Alongside the True HEPA filter, there is also a pre-filter that the company calls primary filter and an activated carbon filter for removing TVOCs like formaldehyde, and odour from the air. 

Xiaomi has also improved the Clean Air Delivery Rate or CADR on the new Mi Air Purifier 3. The device is now capable of releasing 380 cubic meter of air per hour and is said to be effective in an area of up to 484 square feet. In comparison, the Mi Air Purifier 2S has a CADR of 310 cubic meter per hour and is said to be effective in an area of up to 398 square feet. There’s still an OLED display on the device but this time, it is touch-enabled. Additionally, the air purifier comes with IoT support and connects to the Mi Home app to enable complete control, and works with Alexa and Google Assistant as well. 

Mi Air Purifier 3 price and availability 

The Mi Air Purifier 3 is priced at Rs 9,999 and it is now available for purchase via Mi.com. The device will be available via Amazon and Flipkart from November 7. Replacing the filter will cost you Rs 2,199 and no, the device is not compatible with filters from the Mi Air Purifier 2S or the Mi Air Purifier 2C. 

Buying an air purifier? Read our air purifier buying guide here.

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Google Pixel and Pixel XL to receive one last software update this December before retiring

The first-gen Google Pixel and Pixel XL will receive the last software update in December. Three years after the Pixel and Pixel XL launched, Google will retire the original lineup with one last update. Google stated that the phones will not receive an update for the November 2019 security patch. Instead, it will directly get the December patch along with a range of security and bug fixes.

To be fair, Google originally claimed the Pixel phones will only receive two years of regular updates, and three years of security updates. Yet, Google pushed out the Android 10 update for the OG Pixel and Pixel XL, extending the support by another year.

The Pixel and Pixel XL were the first to bring Google’s fantastic camera software to the masses. Google introduced HDR+ with the original Pixel which set the balls rolling for the low-light mode in the camera apps of most smartphones launched this year. Manufactured by HTC, with a Snapdragon 821 and paired with 4GB RAM and up to 128GB storage, the Pixel was Google’s first flagship.  

But despite four years of making phones, Google is yet to figure out a bug-free way to launch phones. All the Pixel phones, when they first came to the market, were plagued with bugs and issues. For instance, the Pixel and Pixel XL were riddled with issues in the microphone, bluetooth, and even the camera. The next Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL had an annoying display issue while Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL were criticised over the design and software bugs. Thankfully, Google was able to fix most of them via regular updates, and come December 2019, the last one will be pushed out to the OG Pixel. Owners of the first Pixel, we believe it’s now time to upgrade.

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LG 2019 OLED TVs start receiving NVIDIA G-Sync update, heres how you can enable it

If you are a PC gamer looking to exploit G-Sync on your 2019 LG OLED TV, then there is some good news for you. LG’s 2019 OLED TVs, E9 (65 and 55 inches), C9 (77, 65 and 55 inches) as well as B9 (65 and 55 inches) will receive the update. According to LG, the update will come to North America followed by markets in Europe, Asia, Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, etc. before the end of the year.

With G-Sync support, gamers can experience a smooth, flicker, tearing or stutter free gaming experience on the TV. To be able to exploit G-SYNC you need to have a GeForce RTX 20-Series or GTX 16-Series GPUs. 

“As the first TVs to offer NVIDIA G-SYNC Compatible support in the industry, LG is once again demonstrating its commitment to delivering the most advanced gaming experience,” said Sam Kim, senior vice president of the TV product planning division of LG’s Home Entertainment Company. “Our partnership with NVIDIA, the world’s premiere gaming hardware brand, is helping our 2019 OLED TVs set a new standard in gaming performance.”

Users of the TV can go into the settings and check if the software update is available. The software version is 04.70.12 for the C9 and E9 models, and version 04.70.04 for the B9 models. On the graphics front, users will need to install the latest GeForce Game Ready Driver via GeForce Experience or the NVIDIA website. 

HOW TO ENABLE G-SYNC ON THE TV AND PC Once your TV and GPU are updated, connect the TV to your PC or laptop via an HDMI cable.  Open the NVIDIA Control Panel. You can do this by right-clicking your desktop, then click NVIDIA Control Panel On the left of the window, select Display and then Set up G-SYNC Enable G-SYNC, and click Apply. You are almost done. Select the LG TV under the Display settings and change the resolution based on the capabilities of your GPU. You can choose between 2560x1440 @ 120Hz for a 40 to 120Hz Variable Refresh Rate range or 3840x2160 @ 60Hz for a 40-60Hz Variable Refresh Rate range. You can also enable Ultra HD Deep Color mode on the LG TV. Do this by going into the settings of the TV, then Picture Settings, Additional Settings, find the HDMI Ultra HD Deep Color toggle and switch it on.  To enable HDR, open “Windows HD Color Settings” on your PC/Laptop. Here switch on “Play HDR Games and Apps”.

One thing to note is that Variable Refresh Rate (VRR) was announced as a function of HDMI 2.1, so how can HDMI 2.0 devices, like the NVIDIA graphics cards, take advantage of this? Well, if you aren't aware, the Xbox One X also takes advantage of VRR on the LG 2019 OLED TVs. According to AnandTech, “While HDMI-VRR was introduced as part of HDMI 2.1, the feature is an optional extension to HDMI and is not contingent on the latest standard's bandwidth upgrades. This has allowed manufacturers to add support for the tech to HDMI 2.0 devices, which is exactly what has happened with the Xbox One X and now NVIDIA's Turing video cards. Which in the case of NVIDIA's cards came as a bit of a surprise, since prior to the LG announcement NVIDIA never revealed that they could do HDMI-VRR on Turing.”

Another thing to note is that the next console generation, the PS5 and Xbox Scarlett are expected to take advantage of HDMI 2.1. So if you are in the market to pick up a TV, then the LG 2019 OLED TVs can be a consideration. You can check our detailed review of the LG C9 here.

Source: (1), (2)

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