Tech News

Hello - my name is Ivan, and I'm the resident photographer here at GSMArena.com! This is my list of favorite phones for the year and you can tell right away that it's a bit boring and predictable. In my defense, I like the biggest and absolute best phones with the more versatile and capable cameras. But I did include an odd phone or two that piqued my interest for other reasons. So let's get started. I'll list the devices in reverse order, so the...

This challenging year is finally done, and we can look ahead to the bright 2022. Yes, it sounds like “2020 too”, but we remain hopeful that changes for the better are coming and life will bring everyone the chance for a new beginning. Thank you for staying with us. We published nearly 5,500 news articles and almost 150 phone reviews. You can take a detailed look in our 2021 numbers in this a dedicated article. We can only wish your phone to never...

Realme had a strong year where we saw plenty of devices in all prices and categories. There were gaming handsets, capable upper mid-rangers with top-tier chipsets, and the usual legion of phone taking on the overly competitive midrange market. As the year is rounding to an end, we decided to look at Realme’s successes and failures, and with such a wide portfolio, it wasn’t hard to find plenty of products to put on both sides of the fence. Winner:...

HMD Global recently rolled out Android 12 update for the Nokia X10 and X20, and now it's the Nokia G50 that's getting a taste of the latest version of Android. HMD hasn't officially announced the Android 12 rollout at the time of writing this, so we don't know which countries will get the update in the first wave. However, multiple reports reveal that the Nokia G50 has received Android 12 in Finland and some European nations. The Nokia G50's Android...

Xiaomi recently unveiled the 12 and 12 Pro in China with Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipsets and the new flagship is featured in a teardown video posted by WekiHome on YouTube. The teardown reveals that the 12 Pro’s build is very much “glass sandwich” structurally. After breaking through the adhesive seal around the rear panel of the glass, we can see the layout of a main board and camera cluster towards the top, battery in the center, and the daughterboard...

Samsung recently rolled out the Android 12-based One UI 4 stable update for the Galaxy S10e, S10, and S10+, and now it's the Galaxy S10 5G's turn to receive the One UI 4 upgrade. The update comes with firmware version G977BXXUBGULB and the usual Android 12 and One UI 4 goodies. It also bumps up the Android security patch level on the Galaxy S10 5G to December 2021. Samsung Galaxy S10 5G The One UI 4 stable build is currently seeding in Switzerland...

It's the end of the year, we are all feeling a bit nostalgic. Having gone throught the most popular reviews of Q1 and Q2 it's now time to recap what phones of the third quarter got your interest. If there is one thing that you, our audience, has made abundantly clear is that you really like the Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 family and particularly the Redmi Note 10 Pro, or Max, as it is known on some markets. Not only did its review top our Q1 chart and...

While the first members of the Oppo Reno5 series arrived in 2020, some did so quite late (including one on December 31) and others launched in 2021. This year we also saw the Reno6 and recently the Reno7 series. There were many launches in the A and F series as well, but we’ll try to condense the best and the worst of Oppo’s 2021 here. Winner: Oppo Find X3 Pro Let’s start with the best, otherwise known as the Oppo Find X3 Pro. The phone was unveiled...

Welcome to our recap of the top news articles of 2021. This is Q2, you can also take a look at the top stories of Q1, Q3 and Q4. It's now time to look at the months April through June, which were defined by a myriad of phone announcements as well as looming phones from further down 2021. Sharp officially brought a 1-inch sensor to a phone with the Japan-exclusive Aquos R6. It had more going for it with a 240Hz refresh rate display, another first....

The Exynos 2200 is coming sooner than expected – the new flagship chipset with AMD graphics will debut on January 11. This is the week after CES and the rumored date for the Galaxy S21 FE launch. Of course, the FE will use the older Snapdragon 888 and Exynos 2100 chipsets, depending on the market (more specs here). This new chipset will be reserved for the upcoming Galaxy S22 series, which are expected to arrive in February. #PlaytimeIsOver. The...

The latest iQOO 9 Pro teasers are in and they are all about the upcoming flagship’s display. The phone will come with a curved Samsung E5 AMOLED panel of the LTPO 2.0 variety refreshing at up to 120Hz and with a 1,000Hz touch sampling rate. The teasers also confirm a 2K resolution which is a marketing term used to describe QHD+ panels in China. The panel will bring a 517 PPI count and will reportedly crank out up to 1,500 nits peak brightness. iQOO...

It’s not just EE, the other two major British carriers will also reinstate roaming fees for those who travel in the EU – there will be £2 a day fee if they want to make calls and use data. This will apply to new customers and those upgrading their plan. Vodafone is set to start collecting the fee from January, EE was also looking at the first month of 2022, but pushed that back to March. Three will add back the fee in late May. The EU dropped roaming...

LG is introducing its next generation of TV panels called OLED EX. These new panels can output up to 30% more brightness while reducing the size of the bezels needed around a TV. Based on a 65-inch TV, the bezel has been reduced from 6mm down to 4mm thin. The “EX” bit comes from “Evolution” and “eXperience” which is a cute acronym for LG, but what does that really mean aside from marketing speak? The improvements come from deuterium, one of the...

Samsung has opened the floodgates this week, releasing updates to Android 12 with One UI 4 left and right. The Galaxy S21 family and the latest foldables went first, and after a hiccup, resumed their update. Then the Galaxy S20 and Note20 families were next, and following those - the S10 of course. Now it's time for tablets. Samsung's latest and greatest, to be precise. We're talking about the Galaxy Tab S7 and S7+. Both of these devices are now...

HDMI Forum, the entity responsible for issuing and licensing HDMI standards, will be announcing HDMI 2.1a at CES 2022. This is the next version of the latest HDMI 2.1 standard that is currently available, and will bring with it source-based tone mapping or SBTM. According to The Verge, SBTM enables tone mapping of HDR content on the source device rather than the display. This means, if you have a Blu-ray player plugged into a TV and playing HDR...

Realme GT 2 series is launching on January 4 and we’ve come to expect three devices based on leaks. One of those was just spotted on Geekbench and its the vanilla model bearing the RMX 3310 identifier. It packs a Snapdragon 888 chipset at the helm aided by 12GB RAM and managed scores of 1,125-points on the single-core test and a 3,278-points outing in the multi-core department. The listing also confirmed Android 12 which presumably comes with Realme...

Samsung brought a late Christmas gift for many Galaxy users and pushed the (fixed) One UI 4 to the Note20 and S20 series, the S10 lineup, and the latest foldables. We can also report the original Samsung Galaxy Z Flip in its LTE and 5G variations is joining the One UI 4 party for good measure. The update was spotted in Italy and Switzerland, and we’re confident other users will also be getting notified by the end of the day. It can also be triggered...

Tecno’s Spark 8 Pro was quietly announced earlier today as expected and it brings a large 6.8-inch screen with MediaTek’s midrange Helio G85 chipset and a decently sized 5,000mAh battery. Spark 8 Pro’s display outputs FHD+ resolution and comes with a punch-hole cutout for its 8MP selfie cam. The back features a ridged design and triple camera setup with a 48MP primary camera next to a 2MP depth cam and a third unspecified module. The phone also...

Yet another round of images of the upcoming Galaxy S22 Ultra in the wild has arrived. As before, this isn't a real phone but rather a dummy, but it nonetheless serves the purpose of illustrating what the phone would look like. It would be nice to see a set of images of the real Galaxy S22 Ultra, only to see the proper cameras in their place. Still, here's a look at the Silver variant of the Galaxy S22 Ultra, alongside the Black one. The S Pen is...

The vivo Y21 launched in India back in August, and now it will get a mightier sibling, called vivo Y21T. According to sources, it will come on January 3 with a triple 50MP camera and a Snapdragon 680 chipset with LTE-only connectivity. Looking at the leaked specs, the Y21T could very well be the vivo Y21s (or the vivo Y33s), but with a Qualcomm chipset instead of the Helio G80. vivo Y33s According to the leak, a 5,000 mAh battery powering the vivo...

Xiaomi held a big conference yesterday where it announced a bunch of new hardware but it also brought a new user interface for its device portfolio with MIUI 13 for phones, tablets, smart devices and TVs. A day after the big event we get our first list of Xiaomi devices in line for the update. The improvements brought to the new version of MIUI for phones include enhanced security with electronic fraud protection, new privacy controls, revamped...

Asus has been testing Android 12 on the Zenfone 8 and Zenfone 8 Flip for a few months now, and as promised, the Taiwanese tech company has released the Android 12 stable update for both smartphones before the year ends. The firmware for the Zenfone 8 comes with version number 31.1004.0404.73 and the Zenfone 8 Flip with 31.1004.0404.61. But do note that the update is currently only seeding for the Zenfone 8 sporting model designation ZS590KS and...

Xiaomi launched three phones under the Redmi Note 11 family, followed by a Redmi Note 11T, and now another one is joining - Redmi Note 11S. The phone with model number 2201117SG appeared on multiple certification websites, including the NBTC in Singapore, BIS in India, and the Eurasian Economic Area (EEC). There are no less than four more variations of the model number, which are likely for the different carrier configurations, as well as multiple...

Samsung is expected to announce the long-delayed Galaxy S21 FE next month, though conflicting reports have us guessing the launch will take place either during (January 3 or 4) or shortly following CES 2022 (January 11). A customer has already been able to purchase the unreleased phone at a retailer in South Africa. Reddit user u/UnknownWon posted several nuggets of useful information that most of us get to benefit from. The user posted an unboxing...

Samsung is moving fast in the updates world. Just yesterday the company managed to restart its update to One UI 4 based on Android 12 for the Galaxy S21 family as well as the Galaxy Z Fold3 and Flip3 after having paused the rollout for a few days to fix some bugs. And today, only one day later, the company is ready to send out One UI 4 to even more devices. We're talking about the entire Galaxy S20 family, including the S20 FE, as well as the Galaxy...

Yesterday we heard that Oppo might skip the number 4 and its unlucky connotations in Chinese culture, and go straight from X3 to X5 in its Find series of high-end smartphones. Not just that, but apparently there will be no less than three Find X5 branded handsets - we're guessing vanilla X5, X5 Pro, and X5 Lite, since that's what the company has done in the past. Today a few renders based on "early prototype schematics" have been outed, and it's...

Beats by Dre has announced a new limited-edition variant of the Beats Studio Buds earbuds to commemorate the 2022 Year of the Tiger in China. The new limited-edition model features aesthetic differences to the standard model. It comes in a red color with golden tiger stripes on the case as well as the earbuds. Aside from that, these are pretty much identical to the standard Beats Studio Buds, which are a pair of truly wireless earbuds with active...

After months of leaks and rumors, Xiaomi’s 12 series is now official with three entries - Xiaomi 12, Xiaomi 12 Pro and Xiaomi 12X. The vanilla model takes a more compact approach with its 6.28-inch screen while still fitting the very best Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chip. The 12 Pro bumps up the size to 6.73-inches and also boasts the same SoC but it also adds an LTPO AMOLED display, bigger battery, faster charging and more capable camera hardware....

Xiaomi’s 12 series phones are official but they weren’t the only new gadgets announced on stage. We got a new Xiaomi Watch S1 smartwatch as well as all-new Xiaomi TWS Earphones 3. Watch S1 is Xiaomi’s most premium watch to date with its stainless steel construction, sapphire glass-protected 1,43-inch AMOLED display and third-party app support. Xiaomi Watch S1 in its three leather strap variants It can track over 117 sports modes and is also 5ATM...

Samsung's stable updates to One UI 4 based on Android 12 for the Galaxy S21 family and the Galaxy Z Fold3 and Flip3 were halted last week due to a nasty issue with Google Play compatibility. Now, about five days later, the issues seem to have been sorted out through some collaboration with Google over the holidays, as the rollouts are finally restarted. There's a new build doing the rounds, and this is labeled G99xBXXS3BULC for the S21 models (where...

Samsung's working on a successor to the Galaxy M32 from earlier this year, which will unsurprisingly be called Galaxy M33. A prototype of this model has been spotted in the Geekbench database today, where it showed up with the Exynos 1200 chipset at the helm. That's the same SoC that the Galaxy A53 5G was caught running the same benchmark with, and their scores are pretty similar too, unsurprisingly. It is in fact likely that the Galaxy M33 will...

Realme TechLife brand DIZO is gearing up to announce a set of new smart accessories on January 5 with the Watch R smartwatch and Buds Z Pro TWS earphones. The Watch R looks a lot like the Realme Watch T1 with a round 1.3-inch AMOLED display, 5ATM waterproofing, continuous heart rate monitoring. It’s also confirmed to feature SpO2 meter, over 100 sports modes and a battery life rated at 12 days of contentious usage. DIZO Watch R and Buds Z Pro (images:...

Oppo finally received a patent for a phone with an under-display camera, and now the company secured the rights on three more designs. All of them have one thing in common: a rear display within the camera island. It is highly unlikely these solutions will be part of the Find X5 series, but we would love to see a revolution in the way we use smartphones, and hopefully, Oppo could lead it. A display on the back is nothing new - Meizu Pro 7 series...

Realme is all set to introduce its GT 2 series on January 4 and as we inch closer to said date we get more details. Just a few days ago we got to see the GT 2 Pro Master Edition’s display in a teaser video and today we get plenty of details about the panel’s specs. Realme GT 2 series display specs (images: Weibo) Realme GT 2 series will bring a 6.7-inch LTPO AMOLED panel with 3216 × 1440px resolution and up to 120Hz refresh rate. The screen already...

OnePlus 10 Pro was confirmed to arrive in January 2022, and the phone is already up for reservations, which is just a feature to notify users when the product arrives. A listing on JD.com said the pre-order is scheduled for January 4, and we think this is also the launch date in China. Smartphone companies usually put their phones up for pre-order when the device is launched, but OnePlus is not a typical maker, since it is as popular overseas as...

Xiaomi will introduce the 12 series tomorrow, December 28. In a series of posts on Weibo the brand also confirmed the new MIUI 13 will debut alongside the flagships, as well as a new high-end smartwatch for business professionals, called Xiaomi Watch S1. Xiaomi Watch S1, MIUI 13 Pad, MIUI 13 teasers MIUI 13 will have a separate version for tablets, and unsurprisingly will be called MIUI 13 Pad. It will allow multitasking for more than two apps -...

Oppo promised in early December a Find X phone with Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 will arrive in Q1 2022. Two weeks later, Mediatek confirmed that another device from the series will be powered by a Dimensity 9000. The leakster Digital Chat Station revealed the flagship family would actually have three members at launch, with the third one with a yet unknown chipset. They also stated Oppo is working on another Find N phone, which will have a horizontal hinge,...

It has been a productive year for Xiaomi – it launched over 50 devices and that is just counting the phones. It also did a bit of rebranding by dropping the ‘Mi’ from its premium devices – starting in the second half of this year, the company goes with just “Xiaomi” + model number, just as it has always done in China. The year isn’t over yet, the company plans to unveil one of the first phones with the new Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 – the Xiaomi 12 series...

Oppo's Find N foldable phone did stay long in the spotlight and after being the most popular smartphone in our database last week didn't even make the top 10 this time around. Instead all eyes are on the Xiaomi 12, which is due to be announced in two days. It leads from the Redmi Note 11 Pro and Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G, which have been in these positions for three weeks now. In fourth place we have another upcoming phone - the vivo V23 Pro, which...

What are the best-sounding smartphones to come out this year? Not the ones that are the loudest - that's settled by the numbers in our tests and we already covered it. No, we're talking about the phones that we can listen to with our own ears and truly like what we're hearing. And while some of the phones we've gathered here are objectively loud and that did help their cases, that's not what got them on this list in the first place. We introduced...

Huawei has consistently delivered impressive smart wearables for the past few years and it's no wonder we welcomed the Watch GT3 with high expectations. Having spent the better part of a month putting it through its paces we are now ready to share our impressions with you. Spoiler alert: it's very good, an the 2021 smartwatch to have for many a user. Read on to find out if you are among them. Design and Build The Huawei Watch GT3 adopted the rotating...

Another week down and only one left to go in 2021. It was business as usual, which means a lot of Galaxy S22 leaks. We saw official cases for the Galaxy S22 and S22 Ultra, as well as a look at the new S Pen. We saw the Galaxy S22 series dummies pictured side by side for scale, as well as a reported official poster for the Galaxy S22 Ultra. We learned that all three S22 models will have glass backs, as opposed to last year's series, where only the...

It's the end of the year, we are all feeling a bit nostalgic. Having gone throught the most popular reviews of the first three months of the year it's now time to recap what phones of the second quarter got your interest. The Xiaomi Poco F3 review, topped the Q2 chart just barely spilled over into April. It was unveiled alongside the Poco X3 Pro, which soaked up a lot of spotlight in Q1 and there are quite a few similarities between the two devices....

Folding phones seem to have an ever-increasing fanbase and Oppo Find N is no exception despite its single-market availability. W loved our time spent with the compact foldable doing our full review and plenty of you are also fond of Oppo’s first folding phone. Last week’s poll was all about your opinion on the Find N and now that the votes are in, we have a clear majority that believes Oppo made the best foldable to date. And there’s good reason...

Working, studying and spending more time at home than ever before leads to some unexpected market trends. The tablet market was dormant for years with Apple having an unparalleled lead over competitors yet once 2020 rolled in things began to change. Android makers re-emphasized their efforts in the once-forgotten tablet sphere and we got plenty of interesting options in all price points over the past twelve months. Apple also kept improving its...

Anker has launched a new multi-device charger featuring four USB-C ports. This charger is capable of providing up to 120W at the same time, provided you can do a bit of math. The way this works is that different ports on the charger have different outputs. One of the ports is capable of sending up to 100W of power by itself if it's the only one in use. Another one can do up to 60W and then the remaining two can do 20W each. Now, if you plug in two...

Apple unveiled the iPhone 13 lineup in September, and the iPhone 14 is still months away from the launch, but rumors around the iPhone 15 have already started doing rounds on the internet, with the latest one claiming Apple will ditch the physical SIM card slot beginning with the iPhone 15 series in 2023. Word comes from Brazilian publication Blog do iPhone, which says that the 2023's Pro models (tentatively called iPhone 15 Pro) will not have physical...

It was a challenging year for all brands, but Apple ends up an absolute winner. Sure, it ended up a victim of the chip shortages as well and is still having trouble putting all of its devices on store shelves. But those devices are in high demand and when that's said for devices as expensive as Apple's are, you know they are pretty great. Apple grew its sales in much of 2021. Whether it was tablets, laptops, or phones, Apple either was the number...

vivo sub-brand iQOO is getting ready to unveil its next flagship smartphone duo, comprised of the iQOO 9 and the iQOO 9 Pro. According to a leaked poster that surfaced in China today, these will become official at an event on January 5. As you can see from the image below, the iQOO 9 has a racing stripe design and an unnecessarily huge camera island at the rear. It sports three sensors, and a lot of unused glass - maybe the other half can be used...

The foldable smartphone space is definitely heating up these days, with more and more companies announcing more and more such devices. Motorola was one of the pioneers of the space, with the original foldable Razr launched in 2019. The 5G followup a year later made much smaller waves, but the company is undeterred and in fact it's already working on the next generation Razr. This information comes straight from a Lenovo exec, posting on Weibo (Lenovo...