Sony slashes PS4 1TB Mega Pack price, offer valid till stocks last

Since we’re all stuck at home during the lockdown, what better time to catch up on playing all those games we missed out on? And to help facilitate that, Sony is dropping the price of the PS4 1TB Mega Pack from Rs 29,990 to Rs 27,990. This price drop also includes the 1TB console, GTA V, God of War, Days Gone, Fortnite DLC and the 3 month PlayStation Plus Subscription bundle. Remember, grab them while you can because this discount will only be available until stocks last. 

Sony has taken the right initiative and given gamers a lifeline during this trying time. If anything, gamers who have never played Sony exclusives like God of War (read review), Days Gone (read review) should definitely look at picking up the console. Plus, you’ll also get a 3 month PlayStation Plus subscription thrown in as well. So, as far as deals go, this seems like a great one. Again, remember this offer is valid only till stocks last!

Also, if you’re looking for games to keep you occupied during the lockdown, you can check out our list of the 25 best single-player games across all platforms, including mobile, right here. And if you're interested in the PlayStation 5, we've got you covered with this article as well. 

Stay safe and game on!

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Honor 9X Pro launched in India: How Honor is making life without Google easier

Honor’s momentum in the Indian smartphone market was punctured by the ongoing tussle between the United States and Huawei with the Chinese company barred from offering Google services on its smartphones. The Honor 9X was launched back in January, and since it was launched in China before the ban took effect, the Honor 9X did come with the familiar Google apps. Now, the company has announced the Honor 9X Pro with upgraded hardware, sans the Google apps. Instead, it comes with Huawei Mobile Services or HMS which Huawei developed as an alternative to the core services run by Google on Android phones launching outside of China. You can read more about HMS in this article.

How different is the Honor 9X Pro from other smartphones? Not much, if you look at the hardware inside. It’s powered by a 7nm Kirin 810 SoC which can take on the latest and greatest in the mid-range segment, at least on paper with the latest Cortex A76 and A55 cores along with a Mali G72 GPU and a dedicated NPU. There is adequate RAM and storage in the smartphone and the camera setup is in line with what you get today, a Sony IMX582 48MP primary camera, an 8MP ultrawide lens and a 2MP depth sensor. On the front is a pop-up module housing a 16MP selfie shooter allowing the screen to stretch all the way to the edges. That’s pretty much in line with the design and hardware trends we saw last year and the beginning of this year.

However, the software experience on the Honor 9X Pro is now totally different. Because it lacks the usual Google services and apps like Google Play Store, Gmail, Google Maps and the like, someone already invested in the Android ecosystem will find themselves unable to access these services. Don’t think Honor hasn’t thought about it though. We learnt some of the steps that Honor is taking to educate users on the new services on the Honor 9X Pro for users in India —

A detailed listing page on Flipkart and IVR calls

The Honor 9X Pro will be sold via Flipkart and the e-commerce platform is hosting a detailed product page for the smartphone where all the details about the Huawei AppGallery are clearly mentioned. Furthermore, there’s a registration link which asks you a bunch of questions and then redirects you to a FAQ page which once again tackles the burning questions arising out of a lack of Google services.

Moreover, speaking to an Honor product manager, we learnt Flipkart will also be making IVR calls to users who purchased the Honor 9X Pro to educate them about HMS and AppGallery.

Availability of apps

One of the biggest doubts around purchasing the Honor 9X Pro is the availability of apps on the new app store from Huawei. The vast availability of apps is one of the biggest reasons to invest in the Android ecosystem and the Google Play Store hosts millions of apps already. The Huawei AppGallery may not have the big numbers to show yet, but Honor assured they are working with apps and games developers to get as many popular apps as possible on the AppGallery. That includes the ones popular in India like Ola, Flipkart, TikTok, Hotstar and the likes.

However, apps like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Uber, etc. are still not present. For other popular apps like WhatsApp and Facebook, the AppGallery will provide a link to the official websites from where users can download the APK and use them like before.

As for services like Gmail, the Honor 9X Pro comes with a Mail app that can be synced with your Google account for emails. Furthermore, you can open Gmail from the browser app directly. Same with Facebook.

What about games like PUBG Mobile and Asphalt 9?

India is one of the largest markets for mobile games. And games like PUBG Mobile, Ludo King, Asphalt 9 and Call of Duty Mobile are wildly popular, especially during the ongoing lockdown. Unfortunately, among the popular ones, only Asphalt 9 and Ludo King are available on the AppGallery right now. An Honor spokesperson confirmed the company is working with Tencent to make PUBG Mobile available for users as well.

App cloning and side loading

While a lot of apps are still not present officially on the AppGallery, Honor sees no reason to not encourage users to sideload apps on the smartphone. Of course, the ones that wholly rely on Google services to work won’t run on the device and crash immediately upon launching. However, apps like Twitter, Instagram and the likes can be sideloaded or transferred from your old smartphone to the Honor 9X Pro via the App Clone feature. Upon asking on the legality of the move considering how most of the popular apps are headquartered in the United States (Huawei is banned from doing business with US companies), Honor assured that the process is perfectly legal and won’t result in ramifications later.

A question still remains on the security aspect of side-loading apps. Apps not downloaded from official app stores and websites are often found to be tampered and injected with malicious code. However, Honor claimed the phone will scan apps in real-time and highlight any breach in security resulting out of sideloaded apps.

Offline retailers to be educated on HMS

Now while customers buying the Honor 9X Pro online get the info on HMS from Flipkart itself, the company also plans to sell the smartphone via offline channels. For that, the company said it will be training retailers to educate users about HMS and AppGallery and the lack of Google apps in the smartphones. Some stores will also have dedicated salesman from Honor explaining how the software experience will be different on the Honor 9X Pro.

24x7 hotline number

Furthermore, the company has set up at a 24x7 support page where users can either chat or get on a call with a support executive regarding any query they may have about the new ecosystem.

The objective is to educate users about an alternative

During the conversation, the Honor spokesperson said the objective right now is to educate users and developers about Huawei Mobile Services and the AppGallery as an alternative to the Google PlayStore for Android smartphones. Sales are not the primary target for Honor presently, which explains the slow launches seen so far. The company hopes users will disregard the lack of Google services (still very hard to do right now), and purchase the smartphone owing for the value for money it offers with the hardware inside.

Will Honor drop Google services completely in the future?

Most analysts are of the opinion that the ban on Huawei to do business with US companies is only temporary, and the near future might allow Huawei to use Google services once again. In such a situation, the Honor spokesperson said they won’t be dropping HMS from Honor smartphones. Instead, Honor may look at creating a separate lineup of devices with HMS and another lineup of devices that comes with Google services enabled. But for now, the Honor 9X Pro won’t have Google PlayStore and access to all the popular and essential Google apps. Instead, you have to rely on alternatives made by Huawei and ones that the company have collaborated with.

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iQOO Z1 with MediaTek Dimensity 1000+ leaked, confirmed to launch on May 19

Vivo’s sub-brand iQOO is gearing to announce the iQOO Z1, world’s first phone with MediaTek Dimensity 1000+ chipset on May 19. However, alleged official renders of the iQOO Z1 have hit the Internet and the latest leaks also reveal the price of the phone along with some key specifications.

The folks over at GizmoChina posted some official-looking renders of the upcoming iQOO Z1 that reveal the phone’s rear panel in all its glory. The design of the phone looks similar to the iQOO Neo3 5G that went official in April.

The leaked pictures showcase the iQOO Z1 in two colours with gradient finish, blue and white. It sports a rectangular camera module with three cameras and an LED flash. The power button doubles up as the fingerprint reader for instant access.

iQOO Z1 rumoured specifications

The iQOO Z1 has been confirmed to come with a 144Hz high refresh rate LCD and is powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 1000+ chipset along with support for 44W fast charging out-of-the-box. On the front, there’s a punch-hole cutout that houses the selfie camera. Earlier rumours indicate that iQOO will provide a control toggle in the settings menu for users to switch between 60Hz, 90Hz, 120Hz and 144Hz refresh rate.

Pre-orders for the iQOO Z1 have allegedly started in China as per some promotional posters spotted on Weibo that has pegged the phone to start at CNY 2,498 which is roughly around Rs 26,500 by direct conversion. Having said that, there’s currently no word on whether the iQOO Z1 will make it’s way to India anytime soon.

iQOO currently sells the iQOO 3 in India with both 4G and 5G variants, making it one of the most affordable Snapdragon 865-powered smartphone in the country.

iQOO Z1 is officially being unveiled on May 19 and we’ll know more about the phone and its camera configuration in the lead up to the launch.

 

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New details for PlayStation exclusive Ghost of Tsushima coming on Friday May 15

If there is one PlayStation exclusive we have seen the least of, it is Ghost of Tsushima. The game which was scheduled to release on June 26 has been pushed back to July 17 to give the Last of Us Part 2 some breathing space. For those unaware, The Last of Us Part 2 is releasing on June 19 and you can read more about it here. Coming back to Ghost of Tsushima, Sony took to the PlayStation Blog and announced, “Hey folks – just a quick note that we’re finalizing a special episode of State of Play airing this Thursday, May 14 at 1:00 pm Pacific Time // 4:00 pm Eastern Time on Twitch and YouTube.” The PlayStation blog goes on to say, “The episode will be focused entirely on Ghost of Tsushima, coming to PS4 July 17. You’ll get an extended look at new gameplay footage, including exploration, combat, and more. The current cut is clocking in around 18 minutes, give or take.”

This means that the entire State of Play episode will be dedicated to the game and we will get to see new gameplay footage, including exploration, combat, and more. The developers have stated that there will be no waypoint and players will have to explore to find their objective. This has made some players wary of the game’s systems as a map or waypoint is usually helpful. Even though games like Assassin’s Creed Odyssey give you the ability to switch off the hud completely and explore the world, the option of the hud is there for those that need it. Hopefully, this concern will be addressed during the State of Play.

It was back at E3 2018 that we got a 9-minute gameplay reveal of Ghost of Tsushima and since then we’ve got one more trailer about the game, but nothing that gives us a good in-depth look at it. It is possible that because of the Coronavirus pandemic, Sony has taken this State of Play approach to show off the game. Else, we would have seen previews from media outlets, just like we saw with the Last of Us Part 2 earlier this year.   

Also, Sony has set expectations right with this blog post. It goes on to say, “And just to be clear — there won’t be any PS5 news or updates in this episode, just a big, beautiful look at Sucker Punch’s PS4 open-world epic.” So it looks like we will get no information about Sony’s upcoming console at this State of Play. Those interested will be able to watch the State of Play event on the PlayStation official YouTube channel or Twitch channel. 

It is good that Sony has set expectations right with what we will see during the State of Play, unlike Microsoft that “promised” next-gen gameplay and gave us a compilation of trailers. You can check out Microsoft's next-gen reveal here. 

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Poco F2 Pro launched globally: Specifications, prices and availability

Poco F2 Pro has finally broken cover and has been launched globally as the successor to the Poco F1. After shipping over 1.64 million units of the Poco F1, the company split from its parent company Xiaomi and formed a separate legal entity. Since then, Poco has launched the Poco X2 in India, the first in the new range of phones. However, Poco fans were left eagerly waiting for the true successor to the Poco F1 and on May 12, the company has finally launched the Poco F2 Pro.

Poco F2 Pro gets the flagship Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 5G chip with 64MP quad-camera setup along with a Super AMOLED screen albeit without the notch cutout. This is essentially the same setup that’s used by the Xiaomi Redmi K30 Pro. Let’s take a brief look at the specifications of the Poco F2 Pro.

Poco F2 Pro: Pricing and availability

Poco F2 Pro starts at 499 Euros (approx INR 40,752) for the base variant with 6GB RAM and 128GB storage and 599 Euros for the maxed-out variant with 8GB RAM and 256GB storage.

It’s available in four colours-- Neon Blue, Phanton White, Electric Purple and Cyber Grey

Poco F2 Pro specifications

Poco F2 Pro features a 6.67-inch Full HD+ (2400 x 1080 pixels) resolution display that uses a Super AMOLED panel. The screen has a 20:9 aspect ratio and is topped with Gorilla Glass 5 for additional protection against regular falls. The phone has an aluminium chassis with a rear glass panel and measures 8.9mm.

The phone is powered by top-of-the-line Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 chipset with an octa-core CPU and Adreno 650 GPU. This is paired with upto 8GB LPDDR5 RAM and 256GB of UFS 3.1 storage. It runs on Android 10 based Poco Launcher 2.0 with dark mode, revamped app drawer along with many new features.

Poco F2 Pro features a quad-camera setup that consists of a primary 64MP camera, a 5MP telephoto lens, a 13MP ultra-wide camera and a 2MP depth sensor. This is supported by a dual-LED flash and electronic image stabilization system. The rear cameras can record in 8K at 30fps and 4K UHD at upto 60fps. There’s a pop-up camera on the front that houses a 20MP selfie camera.

It comes with WiFi 6 modem and supports Hi-res audio playback. There’s an in-screen fingerprint sensor for faster unlock.

The F2 Pro comes with a 4,700mAh battery with support for 30W fast charging out-of-the-box. Xiaomi claims the phone can go from 0-100% in just 63 minutes.

 

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PUBG Mobile Royale Pass Season 13 Arrives Tomorrow: What We Know So Far

PUBG Mobile Royale Pass Season 13 is coming to the game tomorrow and brings a bunch of new features and changes. As we await the arrival of PUBG Mobile Royale Pass 13, here’s what you need to know about it.

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Logitech Sales Surge as Working From Home Boosts Demand

The rise in remote working - teachers giving lessons via video link and doctors giving virtual consultations - contributed to an increase in sales in the company's fiscal fourth quarter to $709.2 million (roughly Rs. 5,350 crores) from $624.3 million (roughly Rs. 4,700 crores) a year earlier.

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