Your Tech Story

smartphone

OnePlus 11

The OnePlus 11 launch date has been finalized

Leave a Comment / News, Tech News / By

OnePlus has made the launch date public for its upcoming high-end smartphone. On February 7, the OnePlus 11 will be unveiled alongside a slew of other new products, including the OnePlus Buds Pro 2.

OnePlus 11
Image Source: 91mobiles.com

OnePlus 11 is on its way. OnePlus has officially revealed its plan for the launch of the OnePlus 11, its next-generation flagship phone, following a slew of teasers and rumors. A teaser video showcasing the camera block and Hasselblad branding was posted by OnePlus. OnePlus 11 will be released on February 7. The OnePlus 11 5G and OnePlus Buds Pro 2 will be unveiled at an event called Dubbed Cloud 11 in New Delhi.

The teaser image that accompanied Monday’s revelation is consistent with earlier leaks of renders and depicts a revised camera bump. Separately, company spokeswoman Spenser Blank stated that two features absent from the OnePlus 10T—a Hasselblad-branded camera system and the adored alert slider—will be included on the OnePlus 11.

Read More: 15.5-Inch MacBook Air Expected to unveil in Spring 2023

There aren’t many specifics available at this time. “Witness the Shape of Power” is the headline for the event teaser, which is undoubtedly related to quick charging, one of OnePlus’ key selling points. According to leaks so far, the device will also have a 6.7-inch screen with a 120Hz refresh rate, a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 CPU, and rapid wired charging up to 100W.

The OnePlus 11 will supersede the OnePlus 10 Pro. It will likely have a premium glass sandwich layout with a metal frame as far as appearance is concerned. The primary camera bump will be the main distinction between the OnePlus 10 Pro and its successor.

It will feature a circular camera bump at the rear with Hasselblad branding in contrast to the OnePlus 10 Pro’s square-like camera configuration. The display is probably going to be more accurate in terms of color and peak brightness than the OnePlus 10 Pro. The smartphone will probably come with a brand-new, enhanced in-display fingerprint sensor as well.

This display is most likely 3D curved, and Corning’s most recent Gorilla glass is anticipated to be used for enhanced protection. The OnePlus 11 should be a wonderful gaming device because the display probably has a better touch reaction rate.

The phone will reportedly have a 5,000 mAh battery and support wired charging up to 100W and wireless charging up to 50W. By limiting the fast charging capabilities to 100W, it appears that the company has discovered the ideal balance between protecting battery health and quick charging.

In order to leverage the market success of its midrange devices in 2022, the company is holding its event in India. As per Counterpoint Research, OnePlus was in 3rd spot in India’s premium smartphone market share, after Apple and Samsung (respectively), thus there is still plenty of space for growth.

The OnePlus 11 is probably going to be sold on Amazon, and it might also be the priciest OnePlus phone ever introduced. The base model of the phone is expected to cost more than Rs 65,000, whereas the top-of-the-line OnePlus 11 with 16GB RAM and 512GB of internal storage may cost more than Rs 80,000.

iOS 16.2

Apple’s iOS 16.2 update released: Check out the new features

Leave a Comment / News, Tech News / By

Apple has begun to deploy iOS 16.2 to all users, together with iPadOS 16.2 as well as macOS Ventura 13.1. Among other things, the new version includes improved encrypted messages for iCloud data, Live Operations on the Home Screen, as well as a unique karaoke functionality for Apple Music. In addition, Apple is launching Freeform which is a collaborative whiteboard app.

iOS 16.2
Image Source: techcrunch.com

Here’s a rundown of everything you’ll be able to do with iOS 16.2.

End-to-end encryption for iCloud data

In earlier years, Apple has encoded sensitive data such as passwords before stashing it in iCloud. With a new Advanced Data Security mode, the firm is now introducing end-to-end encryption for most data. Emails, contact details, and calendar events are not encrypted end-to-end because they are focused on unsecured standard protocols.

If you enable Advanced Data Protection then only you will be able to view your device’s data by verifying your identity on a secure device such as an iPhone or a Mac. Anybody else attempting to decrypt the data, including Apple, will most likely find invalid data.

Read More: Apple now has a deadline for switching the iPhone over to USB-C

This is not to be confused with Lockdown mode, which protects reporters, activists, and defenders of human rights from threats such as government-grade spyware attacks.

With the release of iOS 16.2, all users living in the United States will be able to protect their information with encryption. According to the firm, a larger rollout is planned for next year. At this point, the Advanced Data Protection mode will safeguard backups of your device and messages, as well as voice memos reminders, Notes, Safari Bookmarks, and photos.

Karaoke mode on Apple Music

While Spotify Wrapped is a popular year-end event, Apple Music’s karaoke mode may be a fun feature addition to house parties all year. Apple Sing will also be usable to all iPhone 11 and later users, as well as iPad and Apple TV owners.

Apple separates vocals from music tracks using a fusion of improved real-time lyrical content synced for karaoke as well as on machine learning. It also separates and emphasizes background vocals to create a more immersive group experience. According to the company, at release, this function will be accessible to the top 80 percent of its most-listened-to songs in addition to more tunes being added as time goes on.

Spotify’s karaoke function has been in testing for months, according to users. However, no official rollout was ever confirmed by the company. So now that Apple Music has made this useful feature accessible to its users, the onus is on Spotify to add it to its service.

Freeform app

Throughout its Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC) in June, Apple initially launched Freeform as just a digital whiteboard in its ecosystem. It was previewed last month when it was accessible in iOS 16.2, iPad 16.2, and macOS 13.1 beta versions.

The app is not complicated to use since it’s essentially an infinite board where you can draw items and lines, add media, append documents or notes, and write notes. There’s also a collaborative component, but everyone must use Apple devices.

Digital whiteboard products are extremely valuable. Adobe paid a hefty 20 billion USD for Figma, especially over the past month. Miro raised about 400 million USD earlier this year for a valuation of 17.5 billion USD. Whereas Apple is not currently competing for enterprise customers or professional designers, it is contending for the focus of casual tinkerers who may prefer Freeform over other tools.

Airdrop Limitation

With the iOS 16.1.1 update, Apple reworked AirDrop settings in China. If you set AirDrop to receive requests from “Everyone,” it is restricted to 10 minutes. Also with iOS 16.2 upgrades, the firm is now making this feature available to all users. After 10 minutes, the AirDrop setting reverts to “Contacts Only,” and you must change it by the manual process to “Everyone” each time.

Updates to live activities feature

Live Activities are widgets on the Home Screen and Lock Screen that can be changed in real-time with information. They were part of the iOS 16.1 upgrade. Apple is bringing Sports score updates via the Apple TV app in iOS 16.2. Users in the United States and Canada will have access to NBA, MLB game scores, and the English Premier League. In the meantime, customers in Australia, Brazil, Japan, Mexico, the United Kingdom, and South Korea will be able to access MLB scores through Live Activities.

Other features

• With this update, iPhone Indian users would be allowed to use 5G in qualified regions on the Reliance Jio network.

• The Weather app will include a devoted news section that will display local news stories.

• Apple is also going to add Sleep widgets to the Home Screen. These widgets keep you up to date on the latest sessions and stages. It also allows you, to quickly view your medication schedule.

Starting December 13, 2022, all users with an iPhone 8 or later will receive the iOS 16.2 update.

USB-C

Apple now has a deadline for switching the iPhone over to USB-C

Leave a Comment / News, Tech News, Uncategorized / By

The European Union has set a December 27, 2024 deadline for device makers to shift to USB-C for data and charging ports, which implies Apple will be required to give up the iPhone Lightning connector before then.

Whilst European Union had already reached a decision, the date is a recent development. It implies that the 2024 iPhone 16 will indeed be able to operate without USB-C, but the 2025 iPhone 17 will be required to have it.

USB-C
Image Source: headtopics.com

There is a possibility that Apple will make the iPhone 17 completely portless, relying on Wi-Fi for data transmission and wireless charging to charge the battery. Wireless charging devices are excluded from the European Union’s new regulations.

We’ve already heard rumours that Apple is considering switching the iPhone 15 or at least the Pro models to USB-C for its port. However, we’ve heard the same rumour about so many consecutive iPhones at this point.

Read More: Apple to Start Encrypting iCloud Backups

The EU’s deadline for laptop manufacturers has been extended till April 2026. To improve compatibility, hardware manufacturers will have to ensure that the exact charging speed is present regardless of the charger used.

Of course, this only appears to apply to the EU, but it’s not good enough to justify it for companies like Apple to produce one version of its products with USB-C and another without. The only question right now is how long the users have to wait for a USB-C iPhone.

The iPhone’s adoption of USB-C has been a hard journey. It’s something we’ve been asking since the release of the iPhone 12 in 2020, and rumours regarding Apple trying to make the switch on its flagship handsets have been circulating for nearly as long.

Apple is well-versed in the technology since it is already used in MacBook ports and iPad devices. Even the entry-level iPad switched to USB-C previously this year, leaving only iPhones to use the Lightning standard.

It makes good sense for Apple to switch since there isn’t much reason to remain with its proprietary standard at this point. Apple executives have publicly stated that they will have to abide by whatever directive the European Union imposes.

We’d be fascinated if Apple waits till the iPhone 17 to bring USB-C, but the iPhone 15 could be too soon. This is all speculative, but possibly the iPhone 16 which is expected in September 2024, will be the first to include USB-C.

Galaxy S23

Samsung Galaxy S23 series may feature a next-gen Qualcomm fingerprint scanner

Leave a Comment / News, Tech News / By

The Galaxy S23, Samsung’s flagship smartphone series, is expected to feature Qualcomm’s 3rd Generation ultrasonic fingerprint scanner.

The Galaxy S10 became the first Samsung phone to include an ultrasonic fingerprint reader beneath the display. However, its performance was inconsistent. Qualcomm’s second-generation ultrasonic fingerprint sensor was included in the Galaxy S21. It appears that Samsung’s next-generation rising smartphone will include an even improved fingerprint reader.

Galaxy S23
Image Source: smartprix.com

The Galaxy S23, according to rumours, will include Qualcomm’s 3rd Generation ultrasonic fingerprint reader. However, we’re not sure whether it’s the same 3D Sonic Max sensor Qualcomm introduced earlier this year or a completely new fingerprint scanner. We’re in for a treat if it’s the 3D Sonic Max, which is the world’s largest and most advanced fingerprint reader.

The Qualcomm 3D Sonic Max scanner has a surface area of 20mm x 30mm, which is nearly 10 times larger than the 3-dimensional Sonic Gen 2 8mm x 8mm scanner utilized in the Galaxy S21 Ultra and Galaxy S22 Ultra. It’s already in the iQOO 9 Pro as well as the Vivo X80 Pro.

It has five times the accuracy of the 3-dimensional Sonic Gen 2 and can cater to two fingers at the same time for added security. It even claims to support one-tap fingerprint registration, which greatly simplifies the procedure of registering fingerprints.

The Galaxy S23 series is also expected to include an E6 LTPO 3.0 Super AMOLED display with 2,200 nits of peak brightness, a 200 MP ISOCELL HP2 camera sensor S23 Ultra only, a Snapdragon 8 Generation 2 processor, LPDDR5X RAM, Wi-Fi 7, UFS 4.0 storage and urgent or emergency messaging through the use of satellite communication.

All eyes are now on the release of Samsung’s next flagship smartphone. The Galaxy S23 series has already been the subject of numerous rumours and reports. The launch is already expected to take place in early 2023. A new report now offers some additional information.

According to reports, Samsung will hold a complete Unpacked event for the Galaxy S23 release in San Francisco. It’d be the first live event as they were halted due to the global epidemic.

hotspot

Now users can connect to Android Phones via hotspot on Windows 11

Leave a Comment / News, Tech News / By

Tech giant Microsoft has launched a Windows 11 preview build with an update for “Phone Link” that will allow users to directly link their computer to their Android phone through a mobile hotspot.

hotspot
Image Source: gizbot.com

The “Phone Link” feature of Windows 11 will soon allow laptops and desktop computers to instantly connect to your smartphone. The new feature only works with a restricted range of Android phones. Phone Link, which was made public as a component of the Windows 11 25231 preview build for Windows Insiders, will now enable the hotspot on your smartphone right from your desktop.

Microsoft noted in a blog post, “We’re excited to announce that you can now instantly access your mobile phone’s hotspot on your PC via the Phone Link app. The instant hotspot feature lets you securely start and connect to your phone’s Wi-Fi network without touching your phone.

When your phone is within range it will appear in the Wi-Fi network list on your PC where a single click turns on the phone’s hotspot and connects to it. No more remembering and typing passwords or searching for hotspot settings on the phone. This provides an easier and faster way to repeatedly connect to your hotspot when you are on the go.”

According to Android Authority, Windows Central has reported that Microsoft is now releasing a Windows 11 preview release that is exclusively available to the company’s Insiders on its Dev Channel.

This preview’s build version offers a few improvements and fixes. With this upgrade, users will now be able to use the Windows Wi-Fi bar to instantly link Windows 11 to the mobile hotspot on their phone.

The feature is comparable to Apple’s macOS and iPhones, which enables seamless hotspot connection without requiring passwords between the two devices. When both Apple devices are linked to the same Apple ID, users can link their Macbook to their iPhone hotspot.

Since Windows and Android belong to distinct ecosystems, the same has not yet been possible on those platforms. However, now Windows PCs and Android devices can sync via the Phone Link app. The app was first released in 2018 under the name “Your Phone,” which allowed users to get texts and other alerts from their smartphones on their PCs.

The Phone Link feature, however, is presently restricted to Samsung smartphones with Android 12 and above. Users must have a laptop or PC running Windows 11 (22H2 Build 22621), Wifi, Bluetooth, and the Phone Link app((v1.22082.111.0) in order to use this new feature.

A Samsung Galaxy device with One UI 4.1.1 (or higher) like Galaxy Z Fold 4, Galaxy Z Flip 4, Galaxy S21, or Galaxy S22 is also required. Reports suggest that Microsoft might eventually decide to support additional devices like the Surface Duo.

To modernize the experience, the Preview Build also contains changes to the System Tray and tablet-optimized taskbar. The UWP app icons’ appearance has been fixed, and the font in the Wi-Fi portion of Quick Settings has been made uniform. Another bug that caused applications like Windows Terminal and Paint to crash whenever users attempted to display a tooltip was also patched by Microsoft.

Over the past few years, Samsung has intensified its partnerships with Google and Microsoft. For over a year, Samsung was the only company to provide the Wear OS 3 OS, and now the Samsung Galaxy phones are the first to receive the new Microsoft Phone Link feature.

usb-c

Apple iPhone 15 Series To Have USB-C Charging Port

Leave a Comment / News, Tech News / By

Apple has confirmed that the USB-C charging port will be used in place of the conventional Lightning port on the next iPhone 15 series when it launches. 

USB-C
Image Source: bloomberg.com

Apple’s iPhone 15 lineup suggests that it is prepared for the significant shift to type C. On September 6, 2022, Apple unveiled its latest lineup of iPhone 14, but speculations about the upcoming series have already begun. According to the latest reports, Apple will finally transition to Type C charging ports with the new iPhone 15 series.

With its upcoming iPhone 15 lineup in Europe, Apple is most likely to substitute a type C charging port for its lighting port, which has been in use for over ten years now. Recently, a regulation was established in the European Union requiring all smartphone manufacturers to switch to USB Type C ports by the year 2024.

Apple is now the only significant brand in the smartphone industry that does not adhere to this USB standard.

Apple’s Joswiak revealed at a WSJ tech event that Apple will have to embrace the USB-C connection for its upcoming iPhones. The confirmation follows the EU’s decision in favor of a universal charging connector for all devices.

Reports suggest that the iPhone 15 lineup from Apple will feature four new models with two distinct processors to distinguish between entry-level and premium models. All four models will come with USB-C charging port.

According to speculations, the iPhone 15 Pro models could have enhanced 8GB RAM. The upgraded RAM is added to complement Apple’s new processor. A periscope lens is anticipated for the new iPhone 15 Pro Max.

Although Apple is developing its own 5G modem, the new iPhone 15 range won’t use it yet. This may be used for later models that debut in 2024. The iPhone 15 series will continue with the use of the existing Qualcomm modem. 

It is also speculated that the 6.1-inch basic iPhone model is expected to be discontinued when the iPhone 15 series debuts in 2023. A rumor from Gizmochina claims that Apple would probably release an ‘Ultra’ iPhone model boasting a few distinctive features in 2023.

Many people voiced their displeasure with the new iPhone 15 Ultra model on Twitter in response to the rumor. According to LeaksApplePro, the upcoming iPhone 15 Ultra, would have a premium titanium body.

Before the announcement of the iPhone 14 series, it was speculated that hat the Pro versions in this line-up would also have titanium bodies, however, this did not materialize. Titanium-built phones are incredibly rare and will contribute to the product’s improved appearance. 

According to a report, Apple has been continually assessing the popularity of the iPhone 14 Plus. Some iPhone manufacturing partners have been asked by the company to stop producing the iPhone 14 Plus right away.

Apple has also contacted two component suppliers to reduce manufacturing by up to 90%. The iPhone 14 Plus is reportedly not as well-liked by users as Apple had anticipated.

The popularity of the iPhone 14 has reportedly decreased. Apple appears to be concentrating on bringing a variety of modifications to the new iPhone 15 series right now. 

Along the lines of the EU, India is also considering imposing a rule that would require tech firms to have a common standard charger, including USB-C, by 2024.