Tech News

Vivo teased the S5 earlier this week and today the company announced the smartphone will be unveiled on November 14 at an event in Hangzhou, China. The company made the announcement by posting a video on Weibo. It doesn't reveal much about the S5, but the smartphone was spotted in a video last week with three cameras on its back arranged in a diamond-shaped formation. Details are scarce about the vivo S5 right now, but seeing how the S1 and S1 Pro were photo-centric devices, we expect the S5 to be aimed at the same audience and come with a 48/64MP primary camera and a 32MP...

A couple or so weeks ago an unannounced Huawei tablet leaked in some official-looking (yet low quality) renders, showing a punch-hole display housing a selfie camera in one corner, incredibly thin bezels for a tablet, a keyboard accessory, and a stylus that magnetically attaches to the tablet's top side. Today Evan Blass, aka @evleaks, has outed a new press render of the same device, and also provided us with its commercial name. It's going to be called Huawei MatePad Pro, and not MediaPad M7, as previously rumored. Given the design, stylus and keyboard support, and the name, Huawei...

Samsung has announced the winners of the Mobile Design Competition at SDC 2019. The competition was first revealed in June and it’s the product of a collaboration between Samsung and design magazine Deezen.

Over the past few months, contestants have had a chance to submit designs to one of two categories labeled Next Mobile Wallpaper Paradigm Graphic Design and Next Mobile+ Product Design. The first category revolves around digital products, specifically wallpapers, while the second category explores mobile accessories. Here are the winners and grand finalists announced at SDC 2019.

Best of Next Mobile+ Product Design: Star Galaxy

The star of the Next Mobile+ Product Design category is, well, the so-called Star Galaxy, created by André Gouveia, Nuno Pires, and João Pereira. It’s a robotic stand featuring a 360-degree articulated arm that can hold and wirelessly-recharge a Galaxy smartphone, tablet, or smartwatch.

The stand wouldn’t have standalone Bixby capabilities. Instead, it would be equipped with a speaker and rely on the mobile device’s Bixby assistant. The tilting and rotating robotic arm would follow users with the help of face and voice recognition, meaning that the attached mobile device would always face towards the user. The Star Galaxy seems like a pretty cool idea for a product that could actually sell if it would be priced right. It’s technically a wireless charging stand that’s been souped-up to integrate Bixby without actually having any of Bixby’s brains on-board.

Next Mobile+ Product Design grand finalists: Fellas and BELT

Fellas is one of the two grand finalists in the product design category. It’s an interactive toy/clock powered by the Galaxy Watch. It can resemble a pig, bear, deer, or crocodile, and it uses the smartwatch’s display as an animated mouth for the characters.

Fellas would be able to tell stories and sing songs for children, all the while recharging the connected smartwatch.

Meanwhile, BELT by Alexander Rehn and Tobias Saller represents a new take on the idea of a silicon bumper. It takes the form of what seems to be an oversized silicon loop/bumper which can be resized and secured in place with a clip. The extra silicon material would form a second loop which doubles as a handle.

It’s a simple and effective design idea for a one-size-fits-all protective bumper, and that is precisely why it is interesting. Then again, it’s difficult to tell if it would work as a real product in today’s day and age because the design seems to leave a lot of room for user error. It would be up to the user to securely fit the BELT using the clip, and there’s a higher DIY element compared to other solutions on the market.

Best of Next Mobile Wallpaper Paradigm Graphic Design: Garden of Galaxy

The winner of the Next Mobile Wallpaper Paradigm Graphic Design category is Kalle Järvenpää and the Garden of Galaxy wallpaper. The wallpaper might look simplistic, if not pleasantly colorful, at first glance, but the idea behind the Garden of Galaxy is far more complex.

Each flower’s appearance would be based on a random combination of generated “genes,” as well as the user’s environment. The flowers would grow bigger with time and users would even have the option to share clips of their virtual gardens.

Wallpaper graphic design grand finalists: Approachability and Blossom

Approachability by Andre Cardoso is a wallpaper designed to change its colors whenever the user’s mobile device is located in the vicinity of other Galaxy devices wearing the same wallpaper. The wallpaper’s colors would blend until they’d form a similar hue across the different Galaxy devices.

Last but not least, Blossom by Guan Hong Yeoh is a wallpaper that claims to be a visual representation of energy in motion. It boasts colorful organic forms that change shape and color based on the time of day and ambient sound.

As interesting as these designs may be, it’s worth reminding that there’s no guarantee they will ever become real products. Nevertheless, if any of these ideas born from the Mobile Design Competition would be fully realized, which ones do you think would be the most deserving of a commercial release? Share your thoughts below.

The post Mobile Design Competition concludes with these six unique product ideas appeared first on SamMobile.

Samsung is the latest company to issue its Q3 financial report and the results show a 56% decrease in year over year operating profits. During the July-September period, the company racked in just KRW 7.78 trillion ($6.58 billion) in profits down from KRW 17.57 trillion ($15.04 billion) last year. The sizeable drop is caused due to the slumping semiconductor market and weak demand for memory chips. On the flip side, smartphone profits fared better with solid sales of the Galaxy Note10 and A series helping push the mobile division to KRW 2.92 trillion ($2.5 billion) profit, which is 32%...

We expect Xiaomi's Mi Watch to be released next week and we already got a few teasers for it. Now Xiaomi shared an image of the watch bands and it looks like four colors will be made available at launch. We've got a black one, gray, white and what looks like navy blue color. The straps are made of the so-called fluoro rubber that has anti-allergic and, anti-sweat properties. The band is also designed with a quick release mechanism for maximum convenience. That's all we have for now but it's enough to keep us excited for the next week's release. Source

Luxury brand Caviar has introduced its new iPhone 11 Pro lineup, called Discovery. This time the theme is the Solar System and the most impressive variant is called Solarius and comes with half a kilo of 18-carat gold on the back. The price of the phone is just over $70,000 to make it the most expensive iPhone 11 Pro you can purchase. The cost can increase to exactly $71,520 if you decide to go for the 512 GB variant of the iPhone 11 Pro Max. Fans of Caviar and Apple can also get an iPhone without the extra 500 grams, if they go for the Mars, Terra or Luna options. They have an...

Xiaomi is all set to unveil the Mi CC9 Pro on November 5 in China, and nine days later, it will announce the Mi Note 10. The Mi CC9 Pro and Mi Note 10 will sport a penta-camera setup with a 108MP primary camera. The Mi Note 10 was expected to be a re-branded Mi CC9 Pro for the global market, and the smartphone's Geekbench 5 listing now confirms that. The Mi Note 10 and Mi CC9 Pro have appeared on Geekbench with the same specs, but the Note 10 has 6GB RAM onboard while its Chinese counterpart has 8GB RAM. However, the CC9 Pro's TENAA listing reveals it will arrive in two more RAM options...

While Samsung has plans for the Galaxy A series mapped out beyond 2020, the company hasn’t been very quick with bringing the 2019 Galaxy A smartphones to the US. That’s not surprising, as the mid-range Galaxy A lineup had stayed away from North American shores until last year. This year, Samsung brought a handful of 2019 A series phones to consumers in the US and Canada. Now, it looks like the Galaxy A70 could soon be sold stateside as well.

In development for Verizon at this time

Earlier this month, the FCC certified the US variant of the Galaxy A70, which sports model number SM-A705U. We can confirm that the device is in development for Verizon, but it’s highly likely that other carriers will also offer it to their customers at some point in the future. It may also land in Canada, although a release date or time frame is hard to pinpoint for either market.

The A70 will join the Galaxy A6, Galaxy A10e, Galaxy A20, and Galaxy A50 on the list of Galaxy A smartphones that are currently available in the United States. And that’s a good thing, if you read our Galaxy A70 review. The phone has plenty of attractive features, most impressive of which is a 4,500 mAh battery that supports 25W super fast charging like the Galaxy Note 10 and Note 10+.

The A70 will be slightly outdated when it debuts in the US

However, it’s unfortunate that Samsung isn’t directly launching the Galaxy A70s (pictured below) in the US. The A70s is the same phone as the A70, but it upgrades the 32MP rear camera on the latter to a 64MP camera. Megapixels aren’t everything, yes, but even without the camera upgrade, it makes little sense for Samsung to launch the Galaxy A70 in the US a couple of months after a slightly better variant is available in other (albeit limited) markets.

Then again, perhaps we should be grateful that Samsung is even bringing some of its Galaxy A series to the country instead of keeping it exclusive to the rest of the world as it has done in years past. Hopefully, starting next year, consumers in the US will start getting these devices at the same time as everyone else, especially considering how good Samsung’s mid-range offerings have become in recent times.

The post Galaxy A70 headed to the US, could first launch on Verizon appeared first on SamMobile.

The Realme X is receiving a new software update which brings in the much-requested system-wide Dark Mode to the smartphone. Additionally, the new firmware bumps up the Android security patch level on Realme X to October 2019 and adds an option in the settings menu that lets you swipe down on the home screen to expand the notification bar. The update also improves the touch experience when gaming and adds a toggle in the notification center that lets you switch between SIMs. You can check out the full changelog below for more details. Security Android security...

In August this year, Samsung and Microsoft announced an expanded partnership that will see Galaxy devices come preloaded with many of Microsoft’s Android apps and services. At the time of the announcement, Samsung highlighted enhanced Outlook experience, OneDrive integration, and Link to Windows as outcomes of the collaboration.

Link to Windows already made its debut with the Galaxy Note 10 (made its way to a few other Galaxy devices as well), while the Outlook Android app gained S Pen support a few weeks later. Now, OneDrive integration is going live for the Galaxy Note 10/Note 10+ on Android 10 beta, allowing users to sync their photos and videos directly to Microsoft’s OneDrive from the Gallery app.

If you meet the device requirements, you can go to your Gallery settings and connect your Microsoft OneDrive account to use it as a backup solution. This will also transfer all your existing photos and videos in Samsung Cloud (barring what’s in the cloud Recycle Bin) to OneDrive. Microsoft will maintain your current Samsung Cloud storage quota for free for one year after which you need to pay if you’re using more space than what the free OneDrive plan offers. Microsoft is also offering 15GB bonus data for one year on top of the free 5GB that comes with the OneDrive free tier.

Do remember that once you opt for OneDrive, there appears to be no way to switch back to Samsung Cloud. If you paid for additional Samsung Cloud storage, then the company will refund the same. Also, data other than photos and videos will continue to be on Samsung Cloud even after you make the switch to Microsoft’s cloud solution in the Gallery app.

It’s not clear how long Samsung will continue to operate its cloud solution once the majority of its users shift to OneDrive. The future of Samsung Cloud is facing the same uncertainty as Samsung Flow and Samsung Email after the recent changes. While Microsoft’s offerings are better in some ways, they are not, at least as of now, as deeply integrated as Samsung’s own solutions.

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Canalys posted today its analysis on the smartphone market in Q3, just a day after the report for China. For the first time in two years, the market saw an increase in total sales, and Huawei's performance at home might be a big part of that. The Shenzhen-based company posted a 29% annual growth, but looking at the bigger picture, it actually managed to sell fewer phones outside China than the Q3 period last year. Between July and September 2019, smartphone makers sold 352.4 million units, which is just a percent more than the 348.9 million sales last year, but it is a positive...

It’s hardly surprising to hear that the Galaxy Note 10 series has outsold the Galaxy Note 9, given the reception it got. Samsung officially confirmed this today in its full earnings report for the third quarter of this year.

The mobile division’s earnings were up significantly compared to Q2 2019 due to robust shipments of the Galaxy Note 10. Revenues hit almost $25 billion with operating profit surging 32 percent from Q3 2018 to $2.5 billion. The Korean giant also flexed its technological prowess in the third quarter by releasing more 5G handsets and launching the Galaxy Fold.

More foldable smartphones promised for 2020

This was largely due to the Galaxy Note 10 in addition to a more diverse product range. Samsung released a lot more devices this year than it has over the past few years. It’s increased focus on the entry-level segment has also contributed to the higher profitability.

Samsung mentioned that in the third quarter of this year, the Galaxy Note 10 outsold the Galaxy Note 10. It also posted a double-digit growth in volume, which was to be expected as there are two separate models of the Galaxy Note 10. The completion of the A series lineup transition allowed for cost reduction which led to improved profitability. The company doesn’t break down sales figures for each device so there no information on which entry-level and mid-range phone has done the most business.

It now expects the market to cool down in the fourth quarter of this year. Mobile demand traditionally declines towards the end of this year as flagship models lose their luster and fans hold off on purchases as new high-end models are expected in a few months. However, Samsung does expect its affordable models and the Galaxy A series to maintain solid sales. It does believe that the division’s profitability will decrease as demand for the Galaxy Note 10 slows. Customers who really wanted to buy one have bought one already. Marketing costs will increase towards the end of this year, particularly during the holiday season.

Samsung predicts that demand for 5G smartphones is going to increase in 2020 as 5G networks launch in more countries across the globe. The mobile market will remain highly competitive overall. Samsung’s plan is to offer more 5G devices and foldable smartphones to improve its competitiveness. It has already provided a glimpse of what its next foldable smartphone might look like.

The post Galaxy Note 10 outsells the Galaxy Note 9, more foldables promised appeared first on SamMobile.

Your smartphone comes with limited storage capacity. Many folks listen to music or watch a TV show while commuting; some also take plenty of photos and don’t want to depend on online services for storing them once they run out of space on their phone’s internal storage. Thankfully, microSD slots are still quite common on smartphones, and that makes storage expansion quite easy. microSD cards also come in handy in other devices, like a DSLR, and currently, there’s a great deal on a pack of two Samsung EVO+ 256GB microSD cards. You can get the pack at a 67% discount, which makes this as good a chance as any to stock up on these cards for all your devices.

Hit the Buy Now button to order now!

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Samsung released its earnings guidance for Q3 2019 and predicted that its operating profit would be down 56 percent compared to the same period last year. The company today released its full earnings for the quarter.

While the profit decline might signal to some that Samsung hasn’t been doing enough to stop the bleeding, it actually shows that the company’s recovery strategy is working. The sharp decline is largely attributed to the slow performance of the memory chip market.

Samsung made $6.71 billion in operating profit this past quarter

Samsung made 62 trillion won $53 billion in revenue this past quarter, download 5 percent from a year ago. The company posted an operating profit of 7.78 trillion won or $6.71 billion, a 56 percent decline compared to Q3 2018. Samsung posted a record operating profit in Q3 2018, raking in over $16 billion on revenues of $58 billion.

The company began to manage expectations for the future after posting the record-breaking profit in Q3 2018. That surge was largely due to the stellar performance of the semiconductor division. The quarter saw a strong demand for both server and mobile memory products. It also highlighted the bumpy road ahead as demand for chips slowed and prices fell. We’ve seen that reflect in the company’s balance over the past few quarters.

Earnings from the semiconductor business were down significantly in Q3 2019. That’s because memory chip prices have continued to fall while demand hasn’t picked up. The division also took a hit from declining prices for mobile processors. So while it made over $12 billion in operating profit for Samsung in Q3 2018, it made less than $3 billion in profit in the quarter ending September 2019.

It’s not all doom and gloom for the company. Samsung has taken considerable steps over the past year to improve the earnings from its mobile division. The strategy appears to be working as the division exceeded expectations. Revenues of the mobile business came in at 29.25 trillion won or almost $25 billion, a 17 percent increase from last year. It also made 2.92 trillion won or $2.5 billion in profit, a commendable 32 percent increase from Q3 2018. Samsung attributes this to strong sales of the Galaxy Note 10 and the A series in addition to improved margins on its affordable models.

Samsung is optimistic about the rising demand for semiconductor products in 2020 but stops short of providing a detailed forecast due to uncertainties related to macroeconomic issues. The mobile division will likely see a decline in demand in the final quarter of this year due to seasonality, the Galaxy Note 10 will surely not be as hot in November as it was when it came out in August. Samsung also expects 5G and foldable smartphones to contribute more to its bottom line in the coming year.

The post Samsung’s profit falls 56% in Q3 2019 but mobile exceeds expectations appeared first on SamMobile.

The battery that should have been used on a Samsung device with model number SM-A907F has recently been certified in South Korea. The SM-A907F would be the Galaxy A90s, but we can confirm that the device isn’t actually coming to market. We had exclusively revealed the existence of the SM-A907F around six months ago, but Samsung ended up launching the Galaxy A90 5G instead, and development on the Galaxy A90s ceased soon after the device first popped up on our radar.

The Galaxy A90s is the Galaxy A90 5G

The Galaxy A90 5G is, technically, the Galaxy A90s, but thanks to the support for 5G connectivity, it sports model number SM-A908B. And it also makes sense that the device didn’t come to market as the A90s. There would have to be a Galaxy A90 before Samsung could make an ‘s’ variant, which isn’t the case. What should have been the Galaxy A90 was launched as the Galaxy A80, and the gist here is that Samsung seemingly had a hard time deciding the names for its top-of-the-line 2019 Galaxy A smartphones and that the Galaxy A90s does not exist anymore.

The phone that does exist is the Galaxy A91, featuring model number SM-A915F. We exclusively leaked the entire spec sheet for the A91 recently; it will be a flagship-grade phone like the Galaxy A90 5G, with a Snapdragon 855 under the hood and a 4,500 mAh battery that supports 45W fast charging. It’s unclear when the Galaxy A91 will be released, but considering it’s under testing with Android 10, a launch after the Galaxy S11 is most likely.

The post No Galaxy A90s is coming to market, even though its battery has been certified appeared first on SamMobile.

Huawei's EMUI 10 open beta program has been active in China for some time now and the company is finally extending its availability to international users. Starting today, owners of the Mate 20 series, P30 lite, Nova 5T and P Smart 2019 will be able to test out the latest EMUI features. Complete list of supported devices: Mate 20 Mate 20 Lite Mate 20 Pro Mate 20 X P30 Lite Nova 5T P Smart 2019 P Smart + 2019 If your device is on the list and you want to test out the latest EMUI, you'll first have to download Huawei's Beta app. After that, you're several short steps...

There’s been plenty of confusion over the One UI 2.0 beta program for the Galaxy S10 and Galaxy Note 10. Samsung hasn’t been able to stick to schedule and has delayed the release of both the Galaxy S10 Android 10 beta and the Galaxy Note 10 beta. Of course, in the company’s defense, it never really said anything concrete about when the Galaxy Note 10 beta program would start. Sure, its customer care representatives did, but as we’ve seen on many occasions, Samsung’s customer care can be woefully uninformed about matters of software updates.

The Galaxy S10 beta program is already live in the US, Germany, and South Korea and will expand to other markets soon, and it won’t be long before the Galaxy Note 10 and Note 10+ are brought into the fold as well. Many of you are no doubt getting impatient waiting for your chance to try out Android 10 and One UI 2.0, while some of you might just be watching from the sidelines and would prefer updating directly to the stable release, whenever that comes out. For others, the beta may not even be an option because it won’t be made available in their country. Which of those camps do you fall in? That’s what we want to know through our latest poll!

Go ahead and vote below, then feel free to expand on your answer in the comments section.

Results: As we had expected, plenty of people are interested in trying out Android 10 ahead of its stable release. Unfortunately, Samsung is missing out on plenty of people who are willing to be beta testers by not launching the beta in their country: 27 percent voters said they’d be interested in the beta if it was available in their country. 53 percent voters said they were waiting for the beta to be released in the country, while 13 percent said they prefer stable software, which is understandable given how the beta can have some serious issues. 7 percent said they already have the beta, although since this poll was published a week earlier, the percentage of people who are running the beta is no doubt much higher now.

Galaxy S10

• Model: SM-G973F
• Dimensions: 70.4 x 149.9 x 7.8mm
• Display: 6.1"(157.5mm) Super AMOLED
• CPU: Exynos 9820 Octa
• Camera: 12 MP.CMOS F2.4 45° Telephoto & 12MP F1.5 77° & 16MP F2.2 123° Ultra-wide

More specifications

Galaxy Note 10

• Model: SM-N970F
• Dimensions: 151.0 x71.8x7.9mm
• Display: 6.3"(160.02mm) Super AMOLED
• CPU: Exynos 9825
• Camera: 12 MP, CMOS F2.2 Telephoto & 12MP F1.5/F2.4 77° & 16MP F2.2 123° Ultra-wide

More specifications

The post [Poll Results!] Will you participate in Galaxy S10 or Note 10 One UI 2.0 beta program? appeared first on SamMobile.

Chinese phone maker Xiaomi will unveil its penta-camera smartphone, Mi CC9 Pro, on November 5. The company has already confirmed a few of the phone's features, and today it revealed its battery details. Xiaomi posted an image on Chinese social network Weibo confirming the phone will pack a 5,260 mAh battery. It will support 30W fast charging which will take the cell from flat to 58% in 30 minutes, and take another 35 minutes for a full charge. In another post, Xiaomi shared an image showing off the Mi CC9 Pro's curved edge screen with a waterdrop notch. Xiaomi says the phone will...

An unknown Samsung phone has appeared on our radar-of-things-to-come, carrying model number SM-G715F. Straying from any of Samsung’s current numbering schemes, it remains unclear what kind of a device this might be.

What is the Samsung SM-G715F?

It is the time of year when we can slowly start forming an idea of what devices Samsung has in the works for next season. For the first half of 2020, we expect a number of Galaxy S11-type devices, a second Fold, and the next iteration of the popular A series. In recent weeks we also got wind of Samsung’s plans to launch a budget Note, and perhaps a kind of ‘S10 Lite’. Yesterday, we already remarked that there is so much overlap between some of those new devices, we are uncertain how Samsung plans to make sense of them all. And now, things just got even muddier.

The guys at GalaxyClub have confirmed the existence of a device with model number SM-G715F. Details about this phone remain very scarce at the moment, though two different versions appear to exist: the international SM-G715F and the European SM-G715FN. The device is being tested with Android 10, hinting at a release sometime after the launch of the Galaxy S11.

The model number SM-G715 does not fit in any of Samsung’s existing naming schemes, but does show similarity to the upcoming Galaxy A71, a.k.a. SM-A715. This tells us nothing, of course, and short of hoping for some kind of Galaxy S11 Mini, we can not provide any sensible answers to the question of what the SM-G715 is.

The SM-G710 was launched as the Galaxy Grand 2 many years ago, but we’re pretty certain Samsung won’t be digging that old lineup out of its grave. Until more specs or features leak, we are simply going to have to accept the fact that Samsung may be venturing into new territory in 2020, with more devices or device spin-offs that do not stick to the templates used in recent years.

The post Unknown Samsung phone pop ups, begging for answers: SM-G715F appeared first on SamMobile.

For a change, Samsung is rolling out an important update for the unlocked Galaxy S10 alongside the carrier-locked variants. The major feature update that brings multiple Galaxy Note 10 features to the Galaxy S10 was released for T-Mobile and other carriers earlier this week and is now available for download on unlocked devices. It comes with software version G97*U1UEU2BSIP and includes the October 2019 security patch.

The Galaxy Note 10 had quite a few software tricks up its sleeve when it was launched in August, but it wasn’t long before Samsung brought all of those to the Galaxy S10 series as well. Once the new update is installed, Galaxy S10 owners can enjoy a slew of new camera features, including AR Doodle, a dedicated Night mode and Hyperlapse mode for the front-facing camera, and Night mode for the telephoto rear camera (S10 and S10+ only).

They can also use their Galaxy S10 with Samsung DeX on a PC and instantly connect to Microsoft’s Your Phone Companion app on Windows by using the dedicated Link to Windows shortcut in the notification shade. That’s not all: The update also introduces the Dynamic Lock screen feature and an enhanced video editor that supports adding subtitles to videos and stitching multiple video clips together.

If you own an unlocked Galaxy S10 in the US, you can download the update over the air from the Software update menu of your phone’s Settings app. The update may take some time to reach all users, but if you don’t want to wait, you can upgrade your device by downloading the latest firmware from our firmware archive.

The post Galaxy S10’s Note 10 feature update available for US unlocked devices appeared first on SamMobile.

Xiaomi is expected to launch the Mi CC9 Pro next week, and the phone with 108 MP five-cam setup is going on the international market under a different name - Mi Note 10. While we thought they might be launched at the same time, today the Facebook page of Xiaomi Poland revealed it will have a premiere for new products on November 14, using the five-cam logo. The smartphone is expected to have all cameras on the back lined up vertically, coupled with two dual-LED flashes. Later Xiaomi posted two images on its social media channels, including the Polish version, where it is...

This has been the year when a lot of phone makers' lineups have gotten more confusing than ever, and Motorola is no exception. The One branding used to imply that phones with that name were part of the Android One program, but now... not so much. We're also getting more and more Motorola One branded handsets, and the latest of the bunch is the One Zoom. It has "Zoom" in the name, but its telephoto lens provides only 3x magnification, so it's bested on that front by competitors from Huawei and Oppo. Still, what's it like to use? We prepared a short and sweet video review for you that aims...

Although a lot of Android device makers have already launched 5G capable smartphones, Apple is still holding out. This year's iPhones top out at 4G, but that situation has long been rumored to change in 2020. Now a new report out of Japan claims that next year's iPhones will employ Qualcomm's X55 5G modem, according to four people familiar with the plan. However, there may be supply constraints on the X55 as everyone will want to use it in 2020. Apple's A14 SoC that will debut in next year's 5G iPhones is said to use the world's most advanced 5nm fabrication process, and TSMC will be...

The Y500 Wireless is a new pair of Bluetooth headphones from the Samsung owned AKG Acoustics. It's a fairly affordable pair for casual, outdoor use with a compact, foldable design and some unique features for the price. The design of these headphones is quite appealing. It's quite compact, thanks to a relatively thin frame and small ear cups, and they also fold inwards to be stowed away easily. They come in four different colors, black, green, blue and pink. Build quality is average. They feel lightweight and plasticky with slightly loose joints. The headband length is adjustable...

After the Realme X2 went on sale in several European markets yesterday, the company announced its flagship X2 Pro is going on pre-order starting November 4. On launch, Realme will be able to ship the phone to Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain and the UK. The X2 Pro is every bit of a flagship phone with a 90Hz SuperAMOLED display, Snapdragon 855+ chipset and 64MP main camera. You also get the blazing 50W SuperVOOC charging to top up the 4,000 mAh battery. The baseline 6/64GB version comes with a €399 price-tag. There's also an 8/128GB...

Samsung is currently hosting its 2019 Developer Conference in San Jose, California where the company is showcasing its vision for the future. One UI 2 is a key part of that future and Samsung took the opportunity to announce more of the new features that are coming to its mobile devices alongside the expansion of the UX design to more form factors like wearables and foldables. One of the key aims of One UI 2 is to further declutter the user interface by slimming down incoming notification pop-ups and UI elements like the volume HUD. In addition, Samsung took its one-hand usability...

Chinese technology brand Huawei unveiled the Band 4 fitness tracker last week, and it seems the company will launch a Pro version soon as a render has surfaced revealing its design. As you can see from the leaked image, the Band 4 Pro looks similar to the Band 3 Pro that was announced last year. However, the Band 3 Pro was offered in Black, White and Blue colors, while the Band 4 Pro will come in Red and Pink colors in addition to Black. Details are scarce about the Band 4 Pro right now, but we can expect it to come with an AMOLED display, heart rate monitoring, and 50-meter...

Sony posted the highest operating profit for a second quarter on the back of strong demand for image sensors for mobile phones. Profits were up 16%, for a total of 279 billion yen ($2.6 billion). That's 19% higher than analysts had expected. Profits from the sensor division shot up 59% to 76.4 billion yen ($711 million), an all-time record. This is driven by the rise of the multi-camera setups - a feature that permeates the market from the entry-level to the premium segment. Sony expects that besides smartphones, there will be a rising demand for image sensors for Internet of Things...

Samsung announced the winners of this year’s Best of Galaxy Store Awards at SDC 2019. Unlike last year when Samsung kicked off the first Galaxy Store Awards ceremony and picked five winners, this year the company has recognized no less than 25 developers. They were all invited to participate in the Best of Galaxy Store Awards Ceremony and receive an award, a banner, and Galaxy Store benefits.

Out of the 25 apps, themes, and watch faces to have won the awards, Samsung named only the four biggest winners in its recent announcement. Each pick belongs to its own category, namely Best Racing Game, Best Social App, Best Themes Brand Collaboration, and Best Watch Designer.

2019’s best four Galaxy Store apps/themes

Asphalt 9: Legends won the Best Racing Game 2019 category. Its popularity is evident not only in the Galaxy Store but also in Google’s Play Store. It’s a fast arcade-like racing game and the gameplay fits the mobile platform quite well. Likewise, the colorful graphics are a treat on Samsung’s Super AMOLED mobile displays.

TikTok won the Best Social App 2019 award. It may not require an introduction for some readers, but for others, this is a social media app for creating and sharing short clips. They are usually 15 seconds long and they can be shared not only on TikTok but other social media platforms.

The Best Themes Brand Collaboration 2019 award goes to the Cogul Planet MLB Theme. Cogul Planet is a Korean digital content provider who released the MLB theme back in April to celebrate the winners of the World Series. The themes are complete with ringtones of broadcaster commentaries pulled from the most exciting game moments of the season. Over 100,000 downloads have been registered on the Galaxy Store since April, and the company plans to release more diverse MLB themes in the future.

Last but certainly not least, the Best Watch Designer 2019 award goes to Matteo Dini. His watchfaces combine digital and analog elements to create an interesting mix between retro and modern design languages.

Do you agree with Samsung’s picks or do you have other apps in mind? Have you used any of these apps/themes, and if not, are you going to give them a try now that they’re officially the best of 2019? Hit the links above for the Galaxy Store pages of each individual app/theme if you wish to download them. And as always, feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section below.

The post These are Samsung’s best four Galaxy Store apps celebrated at SDC 2019 appeared first on SamMobile.

Razer has launched two new accessories for smartphones. The first of them is the Junglecat, a controller designed for smartphones but that also works with desktop computers. The design of the Junglecat is very similar to the Joy-Con on the Nintendo Switch. It can be used two ways; you can attach it to the sides of the supplied smartphone case and then plug your phone into the case. Or you can attach the controllers to the controller grip and use the Junglecat with non-supported Android phones and Windows PCs. Unlike the Joy-Con, you cannot use the two halves among two people for...

While Samsung has been pretty quiet on the Galaxy Home ever since it was unveiled more than a year ago, we’ve seen plenty of indications recently that the elusive Bixby-powered smart speaker may finally be on its way to retail shelves. We had been hoping that Samsung would announce release dates for the Galaxy Home at the ongoing developer conference in San Jose, California, but while the company didn’t do that, it did decide to show off the Galaxy Home Mini for the first time.

And when we pressed Samsung on information on the Galaxy Home and Galaxy Home Mini’s retail launch, here’s what we were told:

“The smart speaker plays an integral role in Samsung’s vision to make lives simpler and more convenient through the Internet of Things (IoT). Through a beta test program for Galaxy Home and Galaxy Home Mini, we have listened to valuable feedback from consumers and are now in the process of evaluating the results of the beta test. We will look forward to sharing more details on the product availability soon.”

Unfortunately, the company’s official statement doesn’t put us any closer to finding out a timeframe for when we will be able to purchase either of the two smart speakers. Given how Bixby is still in its infancy compared to established voice assistants like Google Assistant or Amazon’s Alexa, we’re guessing Samsung doesn’t want to say anything concrete about the Galaxy Home’s availability unless it knows the speaker and Bixby are ready to take on its competitors.

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LG Electronics announced its Q3 financial results and the overall picture looks good - highest sales ever between the months of July and September, and best profitability in the last ten years. However, the Mobile Communications division is reporting 24.5% decline in sales on a yearly basis, although it did manage to reduce its operating loss from KRW313 billion ($268 million) to KRW161.2 billion ($138.2 million). The company said the reason for the unimpressive sales was the "challenging global smartphone market". A shining beam of light in the performance of the division was the...

Back in September, Realme announced its Android 10 update roadmap for its smartphones in India. Now, the company has revealed its Android 10 rollout plans for its devices in China. Realme X2 Pro Realme currently sells five smartphones in its home country, which include the Realme X, Realme X Lite (aka 3 Pro in India), Realme Q (aka 5 Pro in India), Realme X2 (aka XT 730G in India), and Realme X2 Pro. Realme will release Android 10 for the Realme X, X Lite and Q in Q1 2020, while the X2 and X2 Pro will get it in Q2 2020. The company hasn't shared an exact date for the rollout...

Bixby is Samsung’s AI-powered virtual assistant that made its debut on the Galaxy S8/S8+ two years back. Since then, it has gradually become a staple feature in most Galaxy smartphones and even expanded to other product categories such as wearables, tablets, smart TVs, select refrigerators, and more from the company.

Though Bixby is still nowhere as good as the Google Assistant or Amazon’s Alexa, Samsung has made some progress in the last couple of years. It made Bixby available in more regions and languages and brought it to more Samsung devices across product categories. It also introduced the Bixby Developer Studio to allow third-party developers to create Bixby capsules and then launched the Bixby Marketplace for users to download these capsules.

At the ongoing Samsung Developer Conference in San Jose, the Korean company announced new Bixby tools and announcements to attract more developers. This includes the introduction of Bixby Templates to enable developers to create new capsules easily by simply choosing from a variety of templates available in the Bixby Developer Studio rather than creating everything from scratch.

Samsung is making the discovery of capsules easier as well through Natural Language Categories, allowing users to search and access capsules without invoking the exact capsule name. Beginning next year, Bixby Marketplace will expand to devices beyond smartphones. To help developers create capsules with consistent user interface designs across its Bixby-powered devices, the company is introducing a new Bixby Views function to the Bixby Developer Studio.

It’s clear Samsung is putting a lot of efforts to turn Bixby into a successful AI platform. You can check the below infographic to see the evolution of Bixby so far.

The post Here is an infographic explaining the evolution of Bixby appeared first on SamMobile.

Previously rumored specifications of a Samsung device sporting model number SM-G770F are now confirmed by the database of benchmark test Geekbench. Just a few weeks ago, we reported that Samsung is working on a device with model number SM-G770. Matching the Galaxy Note 10 Lite’s model number (SM-N770F), this could be some kind of Galaxy S10 Lite. Regardless of the phone’s final name, the first specs of the device were the subject of early rumors, and some have now been seemingly confirmed.

Galaxy S10 Lite (SM-G770F) specs

In the database of Geekbench, the device was caught doing its rounds, leaving several of its technical details behind. Matching rumors, we see the device is equipped with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 855, just like the regular Galaxy S10 series in some markets. Moreover, the phone packs 8GB of RAM, which is more than the base version of the Galaxy S10e.

Last but not least, it is clear that the SM-G770F is being tested running Android 10. Though by itself not surprising, it gives us a clue about Samsung’s release plans. Traditionally, the Korean company always launches its new flagship devices with the latest Android version first. If nothing changes in 2020, the S10 Lite will not be launched until after the Galaxy S11 makes its debut.

All of this can not change the fact there is something off about some of the phones Samsung seems to be working on at the moment. Between the S10 Lite, Note 10 Lite, A90 5G, and the Galaxy A91 that is expected to share its spec sheet (which we exclusively revealed) with the S10 Lite, there is too much overlap, particularly when keeping in mind that all of those devices seem to be targeting the same markets.

Don’t forget we also expect several Galaxy S11 models and a full-blown Galaxy A lineup in 2020, as well as a next-generation Galaxy Fold 2. Even by Samsung’s standards, the waters are getting very muddy very fast in terms of each device’s raison d’être. There is not much else to do but sit back and wait to see what device will make it to the market under which name, perhaps finding some clarification along the way as more details surface.

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After yesterday's confirmation that the upcoming Xiaomi Mi Watch which will go official alongside the Mi CC9 Pro/ Mi Note 10 on November 5, we have the first hands-on tour of the smartwatch. After unlocking the device we see a simple 3x3 app grid with square icons and a dark background which hints that MIUI for Watch will support a built-in dark mode just like its smartphone counterpart. We also get to see the digital crown in action which can be used to navigate the interface and also acts as a power button. Oddly enough the user loads up a video on the small watch screen which...

Another Galaxy M series smartphone is making its way to some European markets. Samsung has launched the Galaxy M30s in Germany and Italy with a price tag of €259, with the device to be available for purchase exclusively from Samsung’s online store and Amazon. It will go on sale in Germany on November 22 after a pre-order period that kicks off on November 5; a release date for Italy hasn’t been mentioned. The phone will be available in blue, black, and white in both markets.

The Galaxy M30s, as we said in our review, is Samsung’s current value-for-money champion. Its 6,000 mAh battery (with support for 15W fast charging) is its main attraction, while the rest of its specs mostly match those of the Galaxy A50s. It has a 6.4-inch Full HD+ Super AMOLED Infinity-U display, octa-core Exynos 9611 SoC, 4GB of RAM, 64GB of expandable storage, a triple rear camera setup that includes 48MP primary, 8MP ultra-wide, and 5MP depth sensors, a 16MP front camera, dual SIM slots, and Android Pie with One UI 1.5.

In fact, for €60 and €100 less than the very popular Galaxy A50 in Germany and Italy respectively, the Galaxy M30s is a much better purchase. It misses out on an in-display fingerprint reader and has a physical rear-facing reader instead, but that’s actually better from a user experience standpoint. The optical in-display sensors Samsung employs on its mid-range phones make sense for the cool factor but have far inferior accuracy and speed compared to traditional capacitive sensors.

The Galaxy M30s should also launch in Spain in the future, as Samsung Spain has a support page for the device, and other European markets may also get it at some point.

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The smartphone market in China has improved sequentially, reported Canalys in its quarterly report. Huawei managed to steal market share from all its major competitors, reaching a total of 42%, thanks to an annual shipments growth of 66%. However, the overall scene remained unimpressive, with 97.8 million shipments, 3% down from the 100.6 million for the same period last year. The runner-up for the July-September period of 2019 was vivo with 17.9% market share, followed by fellow BBK brand Oppo with 17.4% of the pie. Xiaomi and Apple completed the Top 5, while other brands saw 31%...

Apple released watchOS 6 for Watch Series 3 and 4 back in September, and earlier this month the company rolled out watchOS 6.0.1 with some bug fixes. Now, Apple is seeding watchOS 6.1 for all models of its smartwatch, including Series 1 and 2, which were excluded from the initial rollout. watchOS 6.1 doesn't come with any major new features but brings in some improvements and bug fixes. However, users of Watch Series 1 and 2 should expect a new digital clock as well as new Calculator, Voice Memos, and Audiobooks apps. You can head over here to learn more about watchOS 6. watchOS 6.1...

Wireless charging is a pretty convenient feature to have. It lets you quickly start charging your phone and grab it equally fast as well. There’s no risk of pulling the phone while it’s connected to a wire, something all of us are guilty of doing at some point in our lives, and it reduces wear and tear of your device’s USB port. If you’re looking to enter the world of wireless charging, there’s an excellent deal on Samsung’s Fast Charge Wireless Charging Stand that you may want to take advantage of.

The Fast Charge Wireless Charging Stand can fast charge your Samsung flagships wirelessly, and it also supports standard wireless charging for any device that supports the Qi charging standard (including your friend’s latest iPhone). It’s not as fast as newer Samsung fast wireless chargers, but with a 54% discount, it’s certainly an attractive option.

Hit the Buy Now button below to get one while it’s still available!

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Samsung has launched a new suite of device optimization apps for Galaxy smartphone and tablet owners called Galaxy Labs. Like Good Lock, which lets you customize various elements of the user interface, Galaxy Labs is a container of sorts that lets you access the actual apps that let you optimize your device from a single location. There are four apps: File Guardian, Battery Tracker, Battery Guardian, and App Booster.

File Guardian is perhaps the most useful utility here, as it lets you restore files permanently deleted from your phone’s internal storage and external storage, just like file recovery apps on PCs let you recover deleted files on a hard disk. Being able to recover deleted files from the internal storage is especially useful, as file recovery from the internal storage on Android devices using a PC is impossible because internal storage is not mounted on Windows or Mac as a standard USB mass storage disk.

Battery Tracker, as the name suggests, lets you track your phone’s battery usage in a more detailed manner compared to what’s possible with the built-in battery menu on Android. You can track battery usage since the last full charge and also view battery usage for the last seven days. This is something Android 10 and One UI 2.0 will have out of the box, but Battery Tracker makes it possible to have similar battery tracking functionality on Android Pie.

Battery Guardian, however, doesn’t do anything new and only checks if you have existing optimization features like Auto optimization and Sleeping apps enabled. App Booster’s purpose, meanwhile, is quite vague. It says it optimizes all apps (including third-party and system apps) on the device to boost their performance and takes a long time to complete the optimization process, but what happens under the hood is unclear, which is why we’d recommend against using it.

How do I get Galaxy Labs and all its apps?

Galaxy Labs and its related apps are available on the Galaxy Store, but right now, they seem to be available only in the Netherlands. However, you can still install the apps on your device by downloading the APK files. You will first have to download and install Galaxy Labs and Galaxy Labs Agent, and then, you can install all four utilities or just the ones you like.

Below are the links to the APK files that you can get from our APK archive.

Download: Galaxy Labs | Galaxy Labs Agent | Battery Guardian | Battery Tracker | File Guardian | App Booster

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