Month: July 2019

We’re weeks away from the Samsung Note 10 launch on August 7, but the rumor mill is running at full steam. The latest claims the smartphone will get a few radical new features, like gesture controls through the S-Pen audio and video that only records audio from one source.

Other details seem to confirm previous rumors, like a two-model release (the standard Note 10 and a larger Note 10 Pro), but the more exciting claims are new. According to Greek site TechManiacs, which cited a knowledgeable source, the S-Pen will support gesture controls to navigate and produce context-appropriate sounds (if you’re using it to highlight text, it will make sounds like a highlighter marker, for example).

The rumor also mentions the Note 10’s video will include ‘Zoom Audio,’ a feature first introduced in the LG G2 way back in 2013. It essentially promised to record one source of sound and block out the rest, but the results were mixed.

Perhaps the most concrete prediction is the removal of the Bixby button. Instead, you’ll allegedly be able to summon the voice assistant with the power button, sort of like we could do – briefly – with the delayed Samsung Galaxy Fold.

The ‘normal’ predictions are still out there

Even the lower-key predictions seem a bit out of step for the Note line. For instance, the source claims the larger Note 10 will weigh 198g, while the smaller will be 168g – which is far lighter than the 201g of the Samsung Galaxy Note 9.

Further, the source claims the smaller Note 10 will only come in FHD+ and the larger in QHD+, which is also odd given the Note 9 had a QHD+ (1,440 x 2,960) resolution. In other words, the source predicts that the smaller model will be a bit downgraded compared to the flagship specs of its predecessor.

Heck, the rumor even predicts the more diminutive model will have a 6.3-inch screen (compare that to the 6.4-inch Note 9). This could align with a prior rumoralleging that Samsung has a smaller Note 10 planned to exclusively launch in Europe, but even that sounds a bit odd.

Some claims are less crazy: eliminating the 3.5mm audio jack gave Samsung room to add 100mAh of capacity to both Note 10 and Note 10 Pro’s battery, enlarging the former’s battery to 3,500mAh and the latter to 4,300. That capacity gap alone suggests a noticeable size difference between the models, though the disparity affects recharging, too, with the smaller capping out at 25W while the larger allegedly reaching 45W of fast-charging potential.

Other predictions are in line with previous rumors, like starting the larger Note 10 Pro at 256GB of storage and only giving the option of 12GB RAM.

It goes without saying that this set of rumors is the wildest we’ve heard yet for the Note 10 – and we’ve only got a couple weeks before we find out whether they’re true.

iOS 13 and iPadOS 13 come with a new feature that makes it much easier to share audio with your friends. Sure, you can go the “two of you use one half of a pair of earbuds” route, but that isn’t the best way to experience music or watch videos—both listeners miss out on one channel of audio, after all. And while you could always get a 3.5mm splitter, we doubt you’re rocking out with your friends that much.

The new iOS (and iPadOS) audio-sharing feature uses Bluetooth to split audio between two different devices. Specific requirements change depending on which sharing method you use (more on that in a bit), but both users will need a pair of AirPods or Powerbeats Pro wireless earphones, as well as one of the following devices (running iOS or iPadOS 13):

iOS 13: iPhone 8, 8 Plus, X, XR, XS, or XS Mini; or an iPod Touch (seventh-generation).

iPadOS 13: iPad Pro 11-inch; iPad Pro 12.9-inch (second-generation or later); iPad Air (third-generation); iPad mini (fifth-generation).

There will technically be two ways to share audio in iOS/iPad OS 13 when the final versions release for the public later this year. The first isn’t yet supported in the betas, but here’s how it will work:

Option 1: Audio sharing by proximity

Put the two iOS/iPadOS devices near each other while one is playing media from an app like Apple Music or YouTube.

Both devices will get a pop-up; Tap “Share Audio”

You can now share media between the two iPhones or iPads. Both users have separate volume controls on their respective devices.

The second method, though clunkier, works in the current iOS 13 beta:

Option 2: Multi-device Bluetooth pairing

The final iOS/iPadOS 13 release will also allow users to share audio by syncing up two sets of Bluetooth headphones to a single handset.

Put both pairs of Bluetooth headphones into pairing mode (this varies by model—check your user manual or do a quick internet search if you don’t know how to do this).

On the iOS/iPadOS 13 device you wish to use for playback, go to Settings > Bluetooth

Tap the names of each unpaired device to connect both headphones.

Both headphones will now play the same audio simultaneously, but volume and playback can only be controlled on the iPhone/iPad.

With the latest SUPER upgrades from Nvidia joining the company’s extensive lineup of graphics cards, there has been some speculation that the green team could also release a SUPER variant of the top-end GeForce RTX 2080 Ti. Although an Nvidia executive has categorically stated there are no plans to release such a product, it may depend on what AMD has in store.

The graphics card market struggle between Nvidia and AMD has been particularly vigorous this year so far, and that state is unlikely to change throughout the rest of 2019. While AMD has its Navi-based offerings to tempt gamers with, Nvidia has been working on filling gaps with the SUPER variants of its Turing-based GeForce RTX 20 series.

Recently, Nvidia executive Jeff Fisher was quizzed on whether there would be a GeForce RTX 2080 Ti SUPER SKU to complement the range. The company’s senior VP of PC business answered in a firmly negative manner, which would leave the “vanilla” RTX 2080 Ti as Nvidia’s top-end consumer-grade option. But that hasn’t stopped speculation about the potential release of a GeForce RTX 2080 Ti SUPER to counter AMD’s upcoming products.

VideoCardz has opined that Nvidia could be keeping the launch of an RTX 2080 Ti SUPER in reserve in case AMD unveils a card that is faster than the regular RTX 2080 Ti. The same source has offered up some possible specifications for a potential RTX 2080 Ti SUPER graphics solution:

4408 – 4608 CUDA cores (RTX 2080 Ti: 4352; Titan RTX: 4608)

12 GB G6 384 bit (RTX 2080 Ti: 11 GB G6 352 bit; Titan RTX: 24 GB G6 384 bit)

14.0 Gb/s (same as both the RTX 2080 Ti and Titan RTX)

It’s a tricky situation for Nvidia in terms of business, with AMD holding strong cards at the moment. The red team could go ahead and release a graphics card monster that properly challenges the RTX 2080 Ti’s dominance in performance benchmarks, arguably forcing Nvidia to release a SUPER variant just to trump an AMD usurper.

Ahead of every new iPhone release, we’re inundated with rumors, part leaks, mockups, and dummy models, all of which give us a good idea of what to expect when new devices launch.

2019 is no exception. We’ve seen all of the above, and now, we’ve managed to get our hands on three dummy models of the upcoming iPhones, which offer up a look at the designs and feature changes we’re likely to see later this year.

Like the 2018 iPhone lineup, the 2019 iPhone lineup is expected to include three iPhones: a 5.8-inch OLED device, a 6.5-inch OLED device, and a more affordable 6.1-inch LCD device, which will be successors to the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR, respectively.

Compared to the 2018 iPhones, there will be few physical design changes. In fact, these new iPhones look identical to the 2018 iPhones in size, shape, and design, with the exception of the rear camera.

The sole major physical change to the new iPhones is a redesigned camera bump that’s larger and square-shaped, as we’ve heard in multiple rumors. Apple is expected to use a triple-lens camera setup for the 5.8 and 6.5-inch iPhones coming in 2019.

A triple-lens camera adds one additional lens and should result in some solid improvements to the photo taking capabilities of the new iPhones. Based on rumors from Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, Apple’s camera setup could include a 12-megapixel wide-angle lens, a 12-megapixel telephoto lens, and a 12-megapixel super wide-angle lens, which would be the new addition.

This triple-lens camera setup could allow for a larger field of view, a wider zoom range, better low light performance, and it will capture more pixels for sharper, clearer images even when lighting is not ideal. Note that the dummy models we have here feature lenses that protrude slightly — in the finished versions of the 2019 iPhone models, the lenses are expected to be flush with the bump. These dummy models provide a solid look at what we’re expecting, but the completed iPhone is going to look more elegant.

Google has received a lot of attention for its Night Sight mode that allows for bright shots even in the dark, and we wouldn’t be surprised to see Apple offer a competing feature in 2019.

We’ve also heard from Bloomberg that Apple is working on a feature that would use some extra pixel data to do provide tools for automatically repairing a photo or video to fit in a subject that “may have accidentally been cut off from the initial shot.” This sounds a little confusing, but it presumably takes advantage of that super-wide angle lens to let you edit the field of view of an image.

While the next-generation 5.8 and 6.5-inch iPhones will have the aforementioned triple-lens setup, rumors suggest the next iPhone XR will have just two lenses, which is still one more lens than the current model. Presumably this will include a standard wide-angle lens and a telephoto lens, allowing the iPhone XR to better mimic the capabilities of the current iPhone XS and XS Max.

Though the next-generation iPhone XR has just two lenses, the dummy model features the same square-shaped camera bump that’s on the more expensive models with triple-lens cameras, which Apple may have done for design parity across the 2019 iPhone lineup.

Aside from the rear camera bump changes, the three upcoming iPhones feature no other design changes, at least not in these dummy models. There were rumors that the volume button would be redesigned with a round-style switch that we’ve previously seen in iPads, but that’s not depicted here.

These dummy models are based on schematics and leaks from Apple factories and are likely sourced from case makers eager to be the first to get cases for the new iPhones on the market. There’s big money in getting an accurate look at upcoming iPhones to make early cases, and most years, dummy models like these are spot on.

For the most part, these dummy models also are in line with most of the rumors that we’ve heard, so they’re likely an accurate representation of what we can expect. There are no changes to the notch expected this year, though rumors suggest we could see some tweaks in 2020.

Apple may, however, remove 3D Touch from the 2019 iPhone lineup. The 2018 iPhone XRdid not have 3D Touch, and we’ve heard a few rumors suggesting 3D Touch will be eliminated from all iPhones in 2019. It’s not yet clear if this is accurate, but iOS 13 does hint at its removal by adding 3D Touch-style Context Menus that can be activated on devices like iPads with a long press.

There were rumors that the new iPhones would use a frosted glass, also not seen in the models we have here. It’s possible that a new glass look is still a planned feature and just wasn’t included because material wouldn’t impact case fit, but there’s also a chance that rumor wasn’t accurate.

For the next-generation iPhone XR in particular, while not seen in the dummy model, there are rumors of new colors including a lavender shade and a green shade, which might replace the existing blue and coral colors.

We heard other early rumors about the 2019 iPhones that no longer seem to be accurate. There was talk that Apple’s triple-lens camera would have some 3D sensing functionality that would be similar to the TrueDepth camera system, but that’s been pushed to 2020 and will be a major feature of the 2020 iPhones.

There was also talk of Apple switching from Lightning to USB-C in the 2019 iPhone lineup because the company brought USB-C to the iPad lineup, but based on these dummy models and a multitude of rumors, Apple’s sticking with Lightning.

As for internals, we can expect an upgraded, faster A13 chip, and larger batteries could potentially bring some battery life improvements. One neat internal tweak will let the 2019 iPhones serve as Qi-based chargers for other devices, so you may be able to charge one iPhone with another or charge up your AirPods using your iPhone.

Faster Wi-Fi 6 support could be included in the 2019 iPhones, along with ultra wide-band support for improvements to indoor positioning and navigation. Apple may also include an 18W USB-C power adapter and a Lighting to USB-C cable with the new iPhones, allowing for fast charging out of the box.

There’s no word on what the 2019 iPhones will be called, but many have taken to referring to them as the iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Max, and iPhone 11R, which is a possibility, though not confirmed.

As for pricing, Apple may be planning to price the new iPhones similarly to the 2018 iPhones as we’ve heard no rumors about pricing updates. There’s still a chance for some pricing tweaks, though, as Apple did see a dip in sales in countries like China that’s partially attributable to high iPhone prices.

Apple is expected to unveil the new 2019 iPhones in September, and an event could potentially be held during the week of September 9. MacRumors has heard from a reliable source that Apple is planning to unveil the new iPhones on Tuesday, September 10, which is quite likely given past event dates.

For more on what to expect from the 2019 iPhones, make sure to check out our full 2019 iPhone roundup.

Google recently removed several apps from the Google Play Store after discovering they violated the Play Store terms of service—and, more importantly, could be used as stalkerware. That doesn’t mean they’re deleted from your Android device, though, so now’s a great time to remove them.

If you’re unfamiliar with the phrase, “stalkerware” involves giving a third party access to another user’s device, location data, and other sensitive information. These apps often present themselves as “normal” tracking tools—for employee activity on company phones or your children’s whereabouts (a moral grey area to begin with), but they can also be used to spy on romantic partners, friends, or roommates.

These apps run afoul of Google’s policies for apps distributed via Google Play: “Surveillance and Commercial Spyware apps are explicitly prohibited on Google Play. Only policy compliant apps exclusively designed and marketed for parental (including family) monitoring or enterprise management may distribute on the Store with tracking and reporting features, provided they fully comply with the requirements described below.”

As part of these requirements, tracking apps must clearly show that they’re active and cannot mislead users about their purpose. In other words, apps that try to hide on a user’s device and send their location data to someone else are a no-go. Security company Avast was responsible for highlighting these seven stalkerware apps to Google, which you should remove from your Android device if you see them:

Employee Work Spy

Mobile Tracking

Phone Cell Tracker

SMS Tracker

Spy Kids Tracker

Spy Tracker

Track Employees Check Work Phone Online Spy Free

If you don’t see them, but suspect your movements are being tracked in some fashion, consider performing a factory reset on your device. You’ll have to reinstall your apps—and you’ll want to back up critical data like your photos and videos before you kick off the reset—but it’s the best and easiest way to ensure that hidden apps aren’t tracking your whereabouts. Once you have your new device set up, make sure you’re using a stronger unlocking method so someone can’t get back in and reinstall any tracking tools.

Nokia’s been killing it in the Android space for the last couple of years. Under the ownership of HMD Global, we’ve seen a relentless number of Nokia handsets dominate the mid and low-end market, but now thanks to a hands-on photo, we have our first look at a new venture for the company — an Android-powered feature phone.

The photo comes via 9to5Google, and if this is legit, we’re looking at a phone running Android without a touchscreen of any kind.

Taking a look at the interface, the home screen has a microphone icon in the top-center, likely an easy shortcut to the Google Assistant. On a handset without touch input, putting a large emphasis on voice control makes sense.

Below that, there are icons for a camera, Chrome, YouTube, and a mystery app we aren’t sure about. There are also shortcuts for alerts and settings.

As for the mystery phone’s hardware, it bears a striking resemblance to the Nokia 220 — a feature phone the company launched in 2014.

The idea of an Android-powered feature phone is interesting, to say the least, so it’ll be exciting to see if anything comes of this. With IFA right around the corner this coming September, perhaps we’ll learn more there? Only time will tell.

Ahead of flagship phone announcements, Samsung usually announces the beginning of mass production for upgraded RAM and processors. This week, it has announced an industry-first 12Gb LPDDR5 mobile DRAM for, “premium smartphones.” We’re assuming this means it’ll be inside the Galaxy Note 10.

According to Samsung’s presser, this DRAM is optimized for enabling 5G and AI features, which seems like great timing with 5G networks popping up all over the world.

For the nerds here, the DRAM is capable of data rates consisting of 5,500Mbs and is approximately 1.3x faster than previous mobile memory (LPDDR4X at 4266Mbs). The new chip also uses up to 30% less power than its predecessor by integrating a new circuit design with enhanced clocking, training, and a low-power feature that ensures stable performance even when operating at fast speeds.

Samsung also detailed, “When made into a 12GB package, the LPDDR5 is able to transfer 44GB of data, or about 12 full-HD (3.7GB-sized) movies, in only a second.”

Bring on the speed, Sammy.