TECH NEWS : XIAOMI MIUI 9.2 UPDATE, ASUS ZENFONE 5, RAZER PHONE 2018, SONY PS4, HONOR 9

Tech News

Xiaomi Redmi 3S and Redmi 3S Prime start getting MIUI 9.2 update

Xiaomi started to roll out the MIUI 9 Global ROM in November 2017 and most of its smartphones have already received this update. Earlier this week, the Redmi Note 3 and Redmi 1S got the update. Latest reports now confirm two more smartphones from the company are receiving the MIUI 9.2 update. The company seems to have released the update for the Redmi 3S and Redmi 3S Prime, which were running on MIUI 8 Stable ROM.

The news comes of Redmi 3S and Redmi 3S Prime receiving the update comes from MI Forums. It is important to note that this update does not come with a change in the OS version and the smartphones will still run on Android 6.0 Marshmallow.

Unfortunately, the update has the Android security patch for April 2017, making it vulnerable to KRACK WPA2. Redmi 3S and Redmi 3S Prime users should also keep in mind that this is only a Stable Nightly build which Xiaomi releases randomly.

This means the company will only send out the update to all users as a Stable build depending on the feedback it gets from users. We can expect the stable build to be out in the coming days.

In any case, the MIUI 9.2 update brings an interactive and Fresh UI changes with changes in the lockscreen, status bar, and notification bar.

Additionally, there are new optimized themes which include a redesigned home page as well as updated Peach blossom and Asphalt themes. Furthermore, the Mi Mover app can now support data migration restarting.

Talking about the other highlights that the MIUI 9.2 update will add to the Xiaomi Redmi 3S and Redmi 3S Prime, the smartphones will get an improved layout and readability for search results in Contacts, virus scans as well as payment scans merged into the Security scan and better blocklist rules with the ability of separated rules for each SIM card.

Xiaomi becomes the fourth largest smartphone company in the world

Xiaomi is currently the fourth largest smartphone company in the world, as per data released by research firm IDC. And, it turns out that the company should owe its new position mostly to the Indian market. 'Xiaomi managed to double its share to 7 percent from 3.3 percent during the holiday quarter last year globally' as 'the brand continued to expand its retail presence by adding more preferred partners, launching new Mi stores, and partnering with large format retail stores in India.'

Truth to be told, we are not really surprised by this revelation. India is the second biggest market for Xiaomi, just after its home country China.

The company also recently pushed past Samsung in the fourth quarter of last year to become the top smartphone vendor in India, according to the reports by two independent research firms. A Samsung spokesperson, however, had denied the Q4 2017 claims by stating that Samsung sales in the Indian market accounted for 45% of the market share.

Xiaomi smartphones have always been a good bargain with impressive features, trendy design, and most importantly affordable pricing. So it's not hard to see why the Chinese phone maker has witnessed a significant rise in popularity in India over the past few years. Especially, in the budget segment, Xiaomi smartphones sell like hotcakes.

Earlier this week, Xiaomi launched the Rose Gold variant of its Redmi 5A smartphone. The Redmi 5A Rose Gold Edition is exclusively available via Flipkart and mi.com. The smartphone is priced at Rs. 4,999 for the base variant with 2GB RAM and 16GB storage space and Rs. 6,999 for the high-end variant with 3GB RAM and 32GB storage.

Asus ZenFone 5 leaked renders show 18:9 display, dual cameras

Asus is reportedly planning to launch the successor to its smartphones from the Zenfone 4 series in the coming days. The company has even sent out media invites for an MWC press event on February 27th, where it is expected to unveil the new handset or handsets. And as far as speculations go, Asus might unveil Zenfone 5 series smartphones at the event. The smartphones have been doing rounds in the rumor mill for the past few days.

Besides the main reason that we believe that the upcoming smartphone will likely be from the Zenfone 5 series is because the invite that was released earlier mentions #BACKTO5.

So considering this hint, the launch is highly possible. While we are keeping a close eye on the developments, popular tipster Roland Quandt has also leaked some details and the alleged renders of a smartphone from the ZenFone 5 series.

The renders have been retrieved from the manufacturer's manual, and it reveals that the device comes with the codename ASUS X00PD. Talking about other aspects that have been leaked, well, the renders suggest that the smartphone comes with a metal unibody design. Further, there seem to be slight changes compared to older Zenfone 4 models and the new handset has rounded corners. The smartphone retains the 3.5mm headphone port at the top and there is a micro USB port between two speaker grills at the bottom. The smartphone also seems to come with a large display which should be an 18:9 screen while rumors have said that it will measure 5.7-inches diagonally.

At the back, we can see a dual camera setup in a vertical arrangement, fingerprint scanner and the antenna lines seem to have been tucked away at the top and bottom side of the device. All in all, it looks like the smartphone has been designed to attract. But that is all we say about the device right now.

Going by previous leaks and rumors, the handset is expected to be powered by an octa-core Snapdragon 430 SoC clocked at 1.4GHz, coupled with at least 3GB of RAM. The handset is further said to come with dual-SIM functionality, a large 4000mAh unit battery and Android 8.0 Oreo out of the box, with the brand's ZenUI skin on top.

Razer Phone 2018 Gold Edition launched

Razer popular gaming hardware company forayed into the smartphone space by launching the first gaming smartphone aimed at gamers. While the smartphone has managed to attract a lot of attention, Razer has now launched a new edition of the smartphone. Well, the company has launched Razer Phone 2018 Gold Edition to celebrate Chinese New Year which happens to be on February 16.

The new Razer Phone 2018 Gold Edition comes with the company's branding painted in gold color. However, rest of the features and specifications remain the same as the original smartphone that was launched in 2017.

The company could have made the device a little unique, maybe added a little flavor to make it little more interesting. But Razer Phone is a standout product in the smartphone world.

As for the pricing the limited Gold Edition device is priced at $699.99 (roughly Rs. 45,000) and can be purchased from the company's website.

Talking about the features and specs of the Razer Phone comes with a 5.72-inch IGZO LCD UltraMotion display with QHD (1440x2560 pixels) screen resolution, a wide color gamut (WCG), and a 120 Hz refresh rate. It also boasts of Corning Gorilla Glass 3 on top as well as Dolby ATMOS and THX certified stereo speakers.

The handset is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor paired with 8GB RAM. It offers 64GB storage that's expandable up to 2TB via microSD card. It runs on Android 7.1.1 Nougat operating system (eligible for Android 8.0 Oreo) and is backed by a 4000mAh battery with Quick Charge technology.

Sony rolls out PlayStation 4 Beta firmware update v5.50

Sony has some good news in store for the gaming enthusiasts of the European region. A latest Beta firmware Update v5.50 for PS4 Pro was rolled out by Sony for European countries. However there is no official changelog and update is still to be out for the rest of the world.

As per reports from Beebom a number of users have confirmed the reports of the firmware update. The report further suggests that a user can enable an option which allows every game that runs at a higher resolution on the PS4 Pro to get the supersampling down to 1080p. Supersampling is a method which is used to remove aliasing (jagged and pixilated edges otherwise known as 'jaggies') from images rendered in computer programs or other computer programs that generates imagery.

Sony has allowed PS4 user to stop the notification floating on the dashboard by adding the delete option for the notification. A user can also hide the games purchased in library. The PS4 Pro supports 4K resolution gameplay and it also comes along with HDR capabilities. The PS4 Pro is 30 percent slimmer and 16 percent lighter than the original PS4 model. Moreover a user can store games, videos, screenshots and videos in the 1TB device storage. Sony PS4 Pro is priced at approximately Rs. 32,000 and is available for sale at online stores like Amzon.in, flipkart and eBay.

Honor 9 Lite grey color variant will go on sale in India on February 6

Honor 9 Lite is one of the bestselling smartphones in the Indian market. The device was initially launched in India in January in two color variants - Midnight Black and Sapphire Blue and went on sale starting from January 20. So long, the company held four flash sales and witnessed a massive demand for the device in all these sales. Now, Honor has come up with the Glacier Grey color variant that will go on sale on February 6 via Flipkart.

According to the company, the Honor 9 Lite has experienced a great response and massive demand for the Honor 9 Lite, the budget smartphone with four cameras - dual cameras at the front and dual cameras at the rear.

In all the previous flash sales, the device went out of stock in just minutes.

Well, if you are interested in the Glacier Grey color variant of the Honor 9 Lite, you can purchase it during the flash sale slated to happen on Tuesday via the e-commerce portal Flipkart. Purchases made using the Axis Bank Buzz Credit Card are entitled to receive an additional 5% discount.

The reason for the demand is because the smartphone is rich in features and affordable as well. The Honor 9 Lite is priced at Rs. 10,999 for the base variant that has 3GB RAM and 32GB storage space and Rs. 14,999 for the high-end variant with 4GB RAM and 64GB storage. Notably, the actual pricing of the base model is Rs. 11,999 but the company has given a discount of Rs. 1,000 for the first million units taking it down to Rs. 10,999.

In terms of specs, the Honor 9 Lite adorns a 5.65-inch FHD+ IPS display with 2160 x 1080 pixel resolution and 18:9 aspect ratio. There is an octa-core HiSilicon Kirin 659 chipset operating under its hood along with a 3000mAh battery claimed to render up to 20 hours of talk time.

Microsoft announces cheaper Surface Laptop and Surface Book 2 models

Microsoft, in order to make its Surface Laptops more accessible to the consumers, has now announced much cheaper variants of its Surface Laptop and Surface Book 2. While the laptops will be coming at a lower price they will more significantly also feature toned down specs.

Microsoft's Surface PCs do come with top features but they are often reviewed negatively for their high prices. So Microsoft may have taken this aspect into consideration and has now come with new cheaper variants. However, these new variants are expected to offer same value proposition as the standard ones. While the new device does come with a slightly slower processor and less storage space, but if you are on a limited budget then these new laptops could be a good deal.

Talking about the new additions, Microsoft Surface Laptop new variant is priced at $799 (roughly Rs. 51,249) and is almost $200 less in comparison to the $999 (roughly Rs. 64,078) Surface Laptop that was launched last year.

As for the specs, the new model comes with a 1.6GHz Intel Core m3 processor and Intel HD Graphics 620. The device offers 4GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage. It is available only in Platinum color option. However, Surface Laptop prices can also go up to $2199 (roughly Rs. 1,41,049) depending on your requirements.

Talking about the Microsoft Surface Book 2 it will now come in a 13.5-inch version and will be available at $1,199 (roughly Rs. 76,906). This also seems to be a lower priced version compared to the Surface Book 2 (256GB storage base model) that was unveiled by the company last year at $1,499 (roughly Rs. 96,149). The new Surface Book 2 base model is powered by Intel Core i5 processor which is coupled with 8GB RAM. It offers 128GB of storage.