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By Jay Bonggolto
Xiaomi unveils the Redmi Note 10 series starting at $199
by Jay Bonggolto
When Xiaomi announced the Redmi Note 9 series last year, there were only three variants of the lineup, namely the Note 9 Pro and Pro Max as well as the standard model a few months later. Today, the Chinese phone maker is out with the latest iteration of its Redmi Note range of smartphones.
Xiaomi introduced today the Redmi Note 10 series. The latest mid-range series comprises four variants: the Note 10, Note 10 Pro, Note 10S, and Note 10 5G.
Redmi Note 10 Pro
The Pro version is, of course, the highest-end model among the pack, powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 732G chipset. It also sports a 6.67-inch AMOLED DotDisplay with a 120Hz refresh rate, with its screen protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 5 and punctuated by a 16MP selfie snapper.
On its back, the Note 10 Pro has a quad-camera setup comprising a 108MP wide-angle camera, an 8MP ultra-wide angle shooter, 5MP "telemacro" camera, and a 2MP depth sensor. Its 108MP sensor uses 9-in-1 binning technology to combine nine pixels into one to produce a 12MP image. The phone packs a 5,020mAh battery with support for 33W wired fast charging. The smartphone comes in Onyx Gray, Glacier Blue, and Gradient Bronze colors.
The Note 10 Pro will cost $279 for the 6GB/64GB configuration, $299 for the 6GB/128GB version, and $329 for the 8GB/128GB variant. Shipping starts early this month.
Redmi Note 10 and 10S
The Note 10 and Note 10S share quite a few similarities. Both handsets sport a 6.43-inch AMOLED DotDisplay with a 13MP front camera. They also have the same battery, a 5,000mAh unit
featuring 33W wired fast charging. However, the Note 10S is powered by a MediaTek Helio G95 SoC while the standard model - the Note 10 - is powered by a Snapdragon 678 SoC.
Camera-wise, both phones have quad-camera setups with similar lenses: 8MP ultra-wide-angle cameras, 2MP macro sensors, and 2MP depth sensors. Where they differ is in the main sensor, with the Note 10S featuring a 64MP main shooter and the Note 10 making do with a 48MP main camera. The Note 10S is also available in Onyx Gray, Pebble White, and Ocean Blue, which are the same color options for the standard variant except that the last is replaced by Lake Green.
The standard variant is priced at $199 for the 4GB/64GBvariant, $229 for the 4GB/128GB configuration, and $279 for the 8GB/128GB model, with shipping scheduled this month. Meanwhile, the Note 10S will be available to purchase for $229 for the 6GB/64GB variant, $249 for the 6GB/128GB version, and $279 for the 8GB/128GB memory configuration. It will be up for grabs in April.
Redmi Note 10 5G
The Note 10 5G, meanwhile, is one of Xiaomi's most affordable 5G phones. It's powered by a 7nm-based MediaTek Dimensity 700 SoC. It has a 6.5-inch DotDisplay with a 90Hz refresh rate that automatically adapts to any content. The phone features an 8MP selfie camera at the front, while on its back, there's a triple-camera setup comprising a 48MP wide-angle camera, 2MP macro sensor, and a 2MP depth sensor. It packs a 5,000mAh battery with support for 18W wired fast charging. The Note 10 5G ships in Chrome Silver, Graphite Gray, Nighttime Blue, and Aurora Green.
The Note 10 5G will retail for $199 for the 4GB/64GB variant and $229 for the 4GB/128GB version. It will ship starting in April.
Lastly, the Note 10, 10S, and Pro versions come with an "arc side" fingerprint sensor, while the 5G model features a side-mounted fingerprint sensor. All models also include a 3.5mm headphone jack and IR blaster.
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By indospot
Samsung's ISOCELL 2.0 technology brings better light sensitivity to cameras
by João Carrasqueira
Samsung's ISOCELL technology has been part of many of its smartphone cameras in recent years. It's a pixel separation technology that helps separate different colored pixels by placing barriers between the different color filters on the sensor, preventing colors from one pixel from affecting the pixels around it and resulting in more color fidelity. Today, Samsung shed some light on its ISOCELL 2.0 technology (via Android Authority), which aims to improve light sensitivity compared to previous generations of ISOCELL.
In its first generation, ISOCELL used metal barriers to separate the different color filters, which prevented colors from bleeding over, but also absorbed a portion of the incoming light, meaning each pixel would be less vivid. This was first improved with ISOCELL Plus, which replaced part of the metal grid with a new, more reflective material. Now, with ISOCELL 2.0, the lower portion of that barrier has also been replaced by this material, making it so that even more light gets through to the sensor, thus producing more vivid colors.
As noted in the video above, this is especially helpful for small pixels, which have become more and more prominent as cameras start at resolutions of over 100MP. With each pixel absorbing more light, that means that more detailed images can be created thanks to the higher resolution, while also having more vivid colors for each of the pixels.
ISOCELL 2.0 technology was already mentioned last year when Samsung introduced an array of ISOCELL-based sensors. The company said that it would start adopting ISOCELL 2.0 in sensors in late 2020, as is the case with the ISOCELL GM5.
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By indospot
Samsung announces the Galaxy XCover 5, four years after its predecessor
by João Carrasqueira
It's been four years since Samsung introduced the latest phone in its Galaxy XCover lineup, which consists of rugged devices designed for mobile workforces. We did get the XCover Pro last year, which is a higher-end model, but today the company is announcing the XCover 5, a true successor to the XCover 4 from 2017.
The XCover 5 comes with plenty of upgrades over the XCover 4, as you'd expect after a four-year wait period. It now has an Exynos 850 chipset, which has eight Cortex-A55 cores at 2.0GHz. The RAM has been doubled to 4GB and the internal storage is four times higher at 64GB, but both are the same as on last year's XCover Pro. There's also a 3,000mAh battery with 15W fast charging.
The display is a slightly larger 5.3-inch panel, and it's still a TFT panel with HD+ resolution. Since the phone is designed for harsh environments, there's a Glove Touch feature so you can use the touchscreen with gloves on. There's only one rear camera, clocking in at 16MP and f/1.8 aperture, while the selfie camera is 5MP and has an aperture of f/2.2.
As you'd expect, the XCover 5 is rated IP68 for dust and water resistance, and it also meets the MIL-STD-810H standard for durability. There's a set of Pogo pins for charging, facial recognition for unlocking the phone, and one programmable key on the side. It also supports NFC with EMV L1 certification. Finally, in terms of software, it's running Android 11.
The Galaxy XCover 5 will be available this month in markets including Asia, Europe, and Latin America, with other regions coming later. Pricing information wasn't revealed, though.
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By indospot
Nintendo reportedly preparing a new Switch model with a 7-inch OLED display
by João Carrasqueira
The Nintendo Switch rumor mill is turning once again as the console has just turned four years old. A new report by Bloomberg indicates that the Japanese gaming giant is preparing to launch a new revision of the console this year, though a good while later than suggested in previous reports.
This time, though, there's a bit more information, as Bloomberg's sources state that Nintendo is sourcing larger 7-inch displays from Samsung Display, as opposed to the 6.2-inch and 5.5-inch panels of the current Switch and Switch Lite. The biggest difference here is that these displays will be using OLED technology instead of the LCD panels found in the existing models of the Switch. The OLED display should offer better battery efficiency, more contrast, and potentially better response times, according to Yoshio Tamura, co-founder of consultancy firm DSCC.
One thing that some might find unfortunate is that the panel being sourced will still be 720p, so the larger size won't come with an accompanying increase in resolution, meaning the pixel density will be lower than the current model. However, the console will come with some form of 4K support when docked to a TV, meaning there will be an even bigger gap between the handheld and TV experiences. On the bright side, that should help the console's battery last longer and allow the chipset to run cooler.
The report also further clarifies that Nintendo is sourcing rigid OLED displays, as opposed to flexible ones as seen in most of today's smartphones. Flexible displays have been typically used because they make it possible to reduce the bezels around the screen to minimal sizes, but they're naturally more expensive. Still, it's expected that the new Switch model will use the same casing, so bezels will still be reduced from the current iteration.
As noted in the report, the partnership between Nintendo and Samsung would benefit both sides, as Samsung has seen prices for rigid OLEDs drop due to oversupply, while Nintendo manages to secure a partner during a time when display-related components are seeing supply shortages.
Samsung Display is said to be preparing the displays to be shipped to assemblers in July, so a launch in 2021 seems to make sense, and it would help prop up the Switch's appeal for the holiday season as the new consoles from Sony and Microsoft start to grow their audience after a full year on the market. Of course, it's up to Nintendo to make these plans official, so we'll have to wait until then.
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By Rich Woods
Google rolls out minor update for Android 12 developer preview
by Rich Woods
Just like it did last year, and almost to the day, Google is releasing a minor update for its Android 12 developer preview, calling it developer preview 1.1. And just like last time, it's packed with fixes instead of features, but if you're running the Android 12 preview, you're probably going to want to install it.
Here's the full list of fixes:
As for what's coming in Android 12 on the front-facing end of things, there's not a whole lot right now. Notifications are changing, and they're going to get faster, and there are some subtle visual changes in apps like Settings. What's more interesting is the stuff that's hidden, such as a conversation widget, wallpaper-based theming, and more.
If you're already on the Android 12 developer preview, you're going to get this update as an OTA. If not, you can check out our guide to get started.
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