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CES Previews What To Expect From 5G In 2020 As expected, this year’s CES extravaganza featured a lot of noise around 5G, but the actual 5G news from the show was a bit different than many might have predicted. There was little to no discussion of new 5G phones, but a lot of announcements around 5G-enabled PCs. Similarly, we didn’t see (or hear) much about autonomous cars being driven via 5G, or robotic surgery being performed over 5G or any other of the more “out there” applications promised for 5G—in part because people are increasingly aware that those things are a very long way off (or might never really come to pass). At the same time, there was some discussion at Qualcomm’s CES press conference of momentum towards a 5G-based version of the vehicle to vehicle communication (V2V or sometimes called CV2X—short for the cellular-based vehicle to everything connectivity) leveraging the 5.9 GHz frequency band. Ironically, this happened around the same time I experienced a dem...

Apple will reportedly release an iPhone without any ports in 2021 Noted Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has a new research note predicting Apple’s next two years of iPhones, and there’s a wild new detail: Apple’s 2021 flagship iPhone will reportedly kill off the Lightning port, but USB-C fans (like myself) shouldn’t get too excited. According to Kuo’s note, Apple won’t replace the proprietary port with USB-C; rather, it will rely on an entirely wireless experience for charging and syncing, via  9to5Mac . The change would be a big one for Apple, which has relied on the Lightning port for all of its phones since it was first introduced on the iPhone 5 in 2013. And while modern-day iPhones are certainly less reliant on physically syncing data, going to a fully wireless model would have huge ramifications across the tech industry, with everything from charging cable companies to headphone manufacturers being impacted. We’re still a long way out from 2021 — Apple’s 2020 iPhones ar...

Smart mirrors just make you hate yourself This is not how I see myself. Standing at  CES 2020 , the largest consumer tech show in the world, in front of LG's smart "mirror" prototype, I'm trying to suck in my gut to look a little less flabby than I really am. But the cameras -- minor errors aside -- don't lie, and the virtual me projected on the screen doesn't have the body I want it to have. A flurry of thoughts: I don't want a smart mirror that makes me feel like garbage; but then again, if my doughy avatar confronted me each morning, maybe I'd eat more salads. Or maybe the problem isn't my body at all, but rather my own insecurity. After all, LG's ThinQ Fit mirror is just trying to help me find more flattering clothes. OK, let's think about this practically. LG's smart mirror isn't really  shaming  me in any way -- although small errors in the measurements give me a slightly but noticeably paunchier build my first tim...

The new August Smart Lock is worth the wait August retrofit smart locks are popular and for good reason. We gave multiple generations of August locks our Editors' Choice Award for their easy installation, great app and smart home integration. One of the few downsides to the retrofit lock was its size. The large, circular lock needs to mount on the inside of your door frame, where you'll see it all day. August is now addressing that problem with its fourth-gen Smart Lock, which is 45% smaller than its predecessors. It's called the August Wi-Fi Smart Lock.   It feels smaller in my hand (a good thing, since I'm constantly lamenting the rise of mega-screen phones) but it's just as sturdy as its predecessors. The team, which includes renowned designer Yves Béhar, stayed true to the original design while making small updates such as the pattern around the edge. That's now a noticeably grippier ridge design. Along that ridge is a cleverly placed August logo t...

Xiaomi security camera shows users the footage of strangers; Google disables its Nest integration A newly purchased Xiaomi Mijia 1080p smart IP security camera in The Netherlands showed its owner footage from random strangers, making for a rather creepy experience and potential privacy-violating one. After Reddit user, Dio-V posted about this incident and started gathering considerable attention, reports on the matter state that Google has since reached out to him, and as a precautionary measure, has disabled Xiaomi’s integration with the Google Nest ecosystem of smart home devices. Xiaomi has now released a statement acknowledging the matter and stated that the issue has been resolved. It is not clear as to what may have caused this incident, and by the sound of it, the glitch appeared due to an error from Xiaomi’s end. Google opened its third-party devices access programme to vendors of smart home products such as security cameras in October 2019, following which 20-odd sec...

Xiaomi Mi 10 specifications leak online, 90Hz display and 64MP quad camera setup tipped Xiaomi Mi 10 series has already been confirmed to be powered by the Snapdragon 865 chipset. Now, a new leak via Weibo has spilt the beans and revealed key Xiaomi Mi 10 specifications that include a 90Hz OLED display, 64MP quad-camera setup and 30x zoom support. Mi 10 Pro specifications are still a mystery, but we do know that it will most likely be equipped with a 108-megapixel rear camera. Qualcomm has also confirmed that the Mi 10 series would feature 5G support. Xiaomi is expected to announce the Mi 10 series before MWC in February 2020, though an exact launch date is still unknown. Xiaomi Mi 10 specifications:- Xiaomi Mi 10 specifications have shown up on a Weibo post, whereas the Mi 10 Pro is still under wraps. Since these aren’t confirmed, we recommend that you take it with a pinch of salt. As per the leak, the Mi 10 would feature a 6.5-inch OLED panel with 90Hz refresh rate. The p...

Sony to Host CES 2020 Event on January 6: What to Expect Sony has revealed that it will be at CES 2020 this year, and will host an event on January 6 in Las Vegas. The event will begin at 5 pm PST (6.30 am IST, January 7), and will be live-streamed for the world to see. Teasing at what to expect from the event, the company says that it will be ‘unveiling a unique vision of the future, bringing creativity and technology together like never before.' The company is largely reported to be working on an Xperia 3 flagship; however, the company usually launches its phones at MWC, and not at CES. The tech giant's CES 2020 event will be live-streamed on the company website, starting 6.30 am IST on January 6 i.e. Tuesday. The dedicated page for CES teases that the ‘future is coming'. The page notes, “At CES 2020 Sony is unveiling a unique vision of the future, bringing creativity and technology together like never before, to unleash new sensations and emotions.” Sony could ...

Google News Removing Digital Magazines Realising that people are not even reading magazines like Rolling Stone or Conde Nast Traveller and newspapers online, Google has decided to discontinue 'print replica' PDFs of magazines on its Google News app. The tech giant is sending emails to Google News users about full refunds that are being processed and there will be no new issues coming, reports Android Police. The print replica magazines in Google News are the PDF versions of print editions that you could view on smartphones or desktop. Readers could still visit a magazine's website if they wish to read the e-version of the magazine, the report said on Friday. "This notification is to inform you that we're discontinuing print-replica magazines in Google News. "Publishers can continue selling content on Google News in the form of paywalled RSS-based publications - it is only the support for the sale of discrete digital files that are changing,...

Nokia 9.2 launch delayed to late 2020 Nokia 9 PureView successor was previously expected to launch at MWC 2020 and tipped to be called Nokia 9.1 PureView. However, it seems HMD Global is planning to delay its launch to late 2020 and this may push the company to rename the flagship to Nokia 9.2 PureView instead. Tipster  Nokia Anew  has tweeted about the delay in the launch of the Nokia 9 PureView successor, saying that HMD Global is doing this in order to equip the device with Qualcomm’s latest-generation flagship processor, the Snapdragon 865. However, it is important to note that there is no further information to back up this claim, meaning that the actual launch date and name of the flagship could differ. Nokia launched the Nokia 9 PureView with a unique Penta-camera setup at the rear at MWC in February 2019. At this time, flagship Android phones started launching with the Snapdragon 855 inside, but the Nokia 9 PureView stuck to the older generation Snapdragon 8...

iPhone 12’s 5nm A14 chipsets to go  “The A14 chipset for iPhone 12 series will be based on the 5nm process and is said to be about 15 per cent more powerful than the A13 Bionic chipset” iPhone 12 is among the most highly anticipated smartphones of 2020 thanks to the notch-less design it is rumoured to debut with. One of the less talked about aspects of the iPhone 12 series is the processor, which will reportedly be fabricated on the smallest-yet 5nm process. Now, according to a report from  DigiTimes , citing China’s  Commercial Times , TSMC will be solely responsible for making the A14 chipset for the iPhone 12 series. The production is expected to start in Q2 2020 and will launch in Q3 2020. The A14 chipset will use the TSMC’s 5nm process and it could be the first to hit the market with a 5nm chipset. Apple orders are expected to take up to two-third of TSMC’s capacity. Huawei’s HiSilicon division is said to be the other contender for the TSMC’s 5nm producti...

Samsung Galaxy S10 Lite coming soon Samsun g announced the Galaxy S10 Lite and Galaxy Note 10 Lite on Friday as affordable versions of the company’s flagship Galaxy S10 and Galaxy Note 10 phones. The official announcement revealed the design and specifications of the two smartphones, but there was no word on their pricing and availability. While Samsung is still yet to reveal the markets where these smartphones will launch, it has now confirmed the Galaxy S10 Lite and Galaxy Note 10 Lite price, according to a new report by  SamMobile . Both the Galaxy S10 Lite and Galaxy Note 10 Lite are expected to launch in markets like India priced around Rs 50,000. Samsung Galaxy S10 Lite, Note 10 Lite price Samsung Galaxy S10 Lite price will start at 649 euro (around Rs 52,000). This makes the phone cheaper by 100 euro compared to the Galaxy S10e, which was launched as an affordable version of the Galaxy S10 last year. Meanwhile, the Galaxy Note 10 Lite will start at 599 euro (...

The New Acer Nitro 7  is coming soon  Back in April, Acer refreshed its gaming portfolio of laptops and also introduced a few new models. One of them was the Nitro 7, a new series in the Nitro gaming laptop family, designed to offer a more premium experience compared to the Nitro 5, for the casual gaming crowd. This new model features a slightly tweaked design, narrow display bezels, and a metal-covered body, which help it stand out from its sibling. With the latest Intel 9th generation Core CPU and Nvidia's GeForce GTX 16-series GPU on board, does the Nitro 7 offer a good bang for the buck? Let's find out. Acer Nitro 7 (AN715-51-76LS) design The Acer Nitro 7 doesn't have a flashy design, which is something we like. The monolithic build looks slick, and the black paint job doesn't attract smudges very easily. The lid has an aluminium layer, which gives the display some added protection. We noticed some flex in the lid but nothing that caused th...