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OnePlus 9 Pro

OnePlus 9, OnePlus 9 Pro, OnePlus 9R, and OnePlus Watch launched at a virtual event.

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The wait is over for the flagship smartphones launched by the Chinese company this year. OnePlus has launched the OnePlus 9 and OnePlus 9 Pro through an online event along with the OnePlus 9R and the much-awaited and anticipated OnePlus Watch. The new flagship products of the company are going to be powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 888. The new smartphones are also going to have their camera system designed by the Swedish company, Hasselblad. Smartphones by OnePlus have never failed to amaze up with their stunning camera quality. So, this time let’s see what’s in the store for us!

The OnePlus 9 and OnePlus 9 Pro are designed to be the upgraded version of the OnePlus 8T and the OnePlus 8 Pro respectively. Both the new flagship smartphones have 120Hz displays. OnePlus has also launched the OnePlus 9R at a comparatively affordable rate getting a similar experience in 9 and 9 Pro. Apart from the smartphones, the OnePlus Watch also has impressive features like Warp Charge first charging support. So, let’s have a detailed look at these newly launched gadgets.

Specifications of OnePlus 9

OnePlus 9 will be fueled by Android 11 along with OxygenOS 11. The phone has a 6.55 inch AMOLED full HD display. The aspect ratio is 20:9 with a refresh rate of 120Hz. The screen is protected by a 3D Corning Gorilla Glass. The processor of the OnePlus 9 is an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 SoC along with 8GB and 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM (Gadgets 360). The phone has an enhanced multi-layered cooling system which is called OnePlus Cool Play.

Undoubtedly, the new OnePlus 9 will become a top choice for many aspiring photographers out there. The camera system of the phone consists of a triple rear camera, a secondary sensor with a wide-angle, and a monochrome sensor. The primary sensor is the 48 megapixel Sony IMX689 with an aperture of f/1.8 and electronic image stabilization (EIS). The secondary camera has a 50 megapixel Sony IMX766 with the ultra wide-angle freeform lens of aperture f/2.2. The monochrome lens is 2 megapixels. The selfie camera of the OnePlus 9 is a 16-megapixel Sony IMX471 sensor with an aperture of f/2.4.

OnePlus 9 Pro
Image Source: bgr.in

The smartphone doesn’t support storage expansion through an external SD card but the inbuilt memory is either 128GB or 256GB UFS 3.1. Connectivity options are 5G, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.2, GPS/ A-GPS, NFC, and a USB Type-C port. The phone supports Warp Charge 65T fast charging and has a 4500mAh battery. The speaker system of the OnePlus 9 has Dolby Atmos support. The 8GB + 128GB variant is priced at Rs 49,999 and the 12GB + 256GB variant is priced at Rs 54,999 in India.

Specifications of OnePlus 9 Pro and OnePlus 9R

The OnePlus 9 Pro runs on the same OS as the OnePlus 9. The size of the phone’s display is 6.7 inches and is paired with low-temperature polycrystalline oxide (LTPO) technology which enables the smart 120Hz feature. This technology automatically decreases the power consumption by 50 percent. OnePlus 9 Pro also comes with Hyper Touch support which increases the touch-responsive rate to 360Hz. This feature is very helpful for gamers, especially those who want to have a better experience from playing mobile games. Apart from the Snapdragon 888 SoC, the phone has either 8GB or 12GB LPDDR5 RAM.

The camera system of the OnePlus 9 Pro is the same as that of the OnePlus 9 except the former has an additional 8-megapixel telephoto shooter. Sensors consist of an accelerometer, ambient light sensor, gyroscope, magnetometer, laser sensor, and a proximity sensor along with an in-display fingerprint sensor (Gadgets 360). The 8GB + 128GB variant is priced at Rs 64,999 and the 12GB + 256GB variant is priced at Rs 69,999 in India. Both the OnePlus 9 and OnePlus 9 Pro can be preordered from the company’s online stores.

OnePlus 9R will also run on the same OS but will be powered by Snapdragon 870SoC. The phone will have a 6.5 inch OLED display with 8GB RAM and 128GB internal storage. The camera system comprises a 48-megapixel rear camera. The 8GB + 128GB variant is priced at Rs 39,999 and the 12GB + 256GB variant is priced at Rs 43,999 in India.

Specifications of OnePlus Watch

With a 1.39 inch AMOLED display, the OnePlus Watch will also feature a 2.5D curved glass protection. One can receive voice calls and app notifications directly from the watch and can also change OnePlus’s phone settings.  According to the company, the watch is capable of turning off your OnePlus television thirty minutes after it detects that you are asleep or lower the volume of the TV when you get an incoming call on your connected phone. The watch also has 110 workout modes, SpO2 monitoring, stress detection, etc. The price of the OnePlus watch is Rs 16,999 in India.

WifiNanScan

Google launches ‘WifiNanScan’ on Play Store for developers to measure the distance between phones

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Experimenting with new tech to make the best of an Android phone, Google has recently released the WifiNanScan app for the developers. This new app will be mainly used for measuring the distance between two smartphones using the Wi-Fi Aware technology. Google has been working on such technologies to make the entire process of local discoveries easier for Android users. Apart from the developers, the vendors and the university researchers can also experiment with this new technology for their research purpose and business. This Wi-Fi Aware protocol enabled through the new WifiNanScan app will help two devices (smartphones) in close proximity to connect with each other in absence of any internet connection.

What is Wi-Fi Aware?

The Wi-Fi Aware protocol is a technology that enables any Android smartphone that is running Android 8.0 and above to discover other such devices in close proximity. The device can then directly establish a connection with the other smartphones without any connectivity like the internet. The Wi-Fi Aware technology is also known as Neighbor Awareness Networking (NAN). This technology is made accessible to the public through Google’s new WifiNanScan app which will be mostly used by developers for experimenting and using it as a testing tool.

The Wi-Fi Aware protocol uses the APIs to discover any devices nearby and establish connections between the same. These devices after getting connected can share large amounts of data and send short messages as well (9to5Google). Google has also claimed that with this new app “higher throughput rates across longer distances” are possible which will be more than Bluetooth connection. After the app is installed, it will be able to measure the distance between two smartphones which are up to fifteen meters apart with a precision of about one meter.

Advantage of the Neighbor Awareness Networking (NAN) Technology

With Wi-Fi Aware protocol using the NAN technology can measure the distance between the two smartphones using the app quite efficiently, it has a lot of advantages. Many discovery apps can implement this technology based on Wi-Fi Aware with the advantage of not needing a stable internet connection. Mainly the developers and OEMs will make extensive use of this tool in order to validate the distance measurement thus making the development process of many apps better. For example, researchers and developers can use this for peer-to-peer ranging and data transfer, find my phone, and context-aware applications (9to5Google).

WifiNanScan
Image Source: play.google.com

Application of WifiNanScan App

Establishing a connection between two smartphones without having to connect to the internet can have a plethora of advantages. You can send important files to someone in close proximity without using any data. There are still many people who find it difficult to afford unlimited data, especially in the pandemic situation when demand for stable connections has significantly increased. So, it will be really helpful if data can be saved for small activities.

Google, for instance, has mentioned a few applications for this new app. The company says that this app can be used to securely send some important documents to the printer without having to log into the network at first. One can also book a table at a restaurant without any internet connection just walking by when the restaurant is not even open. This technology can be used in many fields if harnessed potential efficiently.

WiFiRttScan Application

Two years back a similar app was released by Google called WiFiRttScan App. Android 9 Pie introduced this app for supporting indoor positioning by leveraging 802.11 mc. Google said that the Wi-Fi Round Trip Time (RTT) will enable the system and apps to measure the distance to the nearby RTT cable access points. This technology though is only viable for Android 9 and later versions to take advantage of indoor positioning.

Google then said the same that this app was for research and experiment purposes to validate range measurements and other uses of the RTT tech to build any applications. Apart from the in-building navigation system, the app also provided two extra features. There are, namely, disambiguated voice control and location-based information.

OnePlus 9R 5G

OnePlus to Incorporate Gaming Triggers in its New 9R 5G to Better the Experience for the Gamers

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OnePlus smartphones are known for their high definition camera quality, and with every new launch, it has something exciting to offer. The company is now all set to launch its flagship smartphone in India, which too, is going to incorporate the gaming triggers for its client base who love to play games on their smartphones. The company will launch its 5G smartphone, the OnePlus 9R, in India on 23rd March, and it has already revealed the first look of the product through a teaser on its official Twitter account.

OnePlus 9R 5G

A few days ago, OnePlus confirmed the launch date for its flagship smartphone, 9R 5G, in India, i.e. 23rd of March. The smartphone that claims to provide a “robust flagship experience” to its users, will share the launch date with two other smartphones from the OnePlus 9 series, i.e. OnePlus 9 and OnePlus 9 Pro phones.

OnePlus CEO, Pete Lau, revealed that the premium device is going to offer support for 5G and will provide “smooth scrolling, immersive gaming controls, and a superior viewing experience.” The company claimed that it wants to reach a wider range of customers, so the prices are going to be quite affordable. Though Lau did not give any numbers about the prices, he confirmed that the premium smartphones will be under a mid-price range.

“With the OnePlus 9R, we are looking to go even further to bring out a balanced handset with the latest technology and class-leading industrial design that can deliver a superior user experience overall and can also offer fast and smooth experiences for daily usage and heavy gameplay,” Lau said.

OnePlus 9R 5G Features

According to some of the reports, the new premium smartphone is mounted with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 690 processor. But believing some other sources, it will come with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 865 SoC. The OnePlus 9R 5G is going to have a 90Hz display and will offer a high refresh rate display. The smartphone is also going to boast an HD+ resolution screen. Like its other contemporaries, the teaser reveals multiple rear cameras, and the front camera will be a punch-hole design. Also, the OnePlus 9 series smartphones will have a 4,500mAh battery with 65W fast charging support.

OnePlus 9R 5G
Image Source: indianexpress.com

Good News for the Gamers

OnePlus has confirmed that the OnePlus 9R 5G will be a special phone. It will provide support for 5G technology, but at the same time, it will be enhancing the gaming experience for game lovers as the new phone is incorporated with gaming triggers. Though these triggers are not quite visible in the OnePlus teaser it has posted on its official Twitter account, a picture posted by @thebookisclosed has given more than a hint about the triggers. Some of the reports have also confirmed that the smartphone is going to have those gaming triggers.

From the picture, we have concluded that the triggers are detachable. But the picture doesn’t give any information on if the smartphone will come with some other gaming accessories, or the gaming triggers are the only accessories that the users will get. Also, there is no hint on whether the other two flagship mobiles, i.e. OnePlus 9 and 9 Pro, will also be able to run the gaming triggers, or these are only built exclusively for 9R.

The games like PUBG, Fornite, and FreeFire have given a boost to smartphone gameplay. The launch of a smartphone with gaming triggers can be good news for gamers. The speculations are that the new OnePlus 9R will enter into a competition with other gaming smartphones like ASUS ROG and Black Shark.

PS5 VR Controller

Sony Unveils its Next-Generation PlayStation VR Controller for PS5

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Sony introduced its first VR Playstation about four years ago, and since then, there has been tremendous advancement in the game itself. Last month, Sony revealed its next generation of VR on PlayStation5, capable of almost fulfilling Sony’s mission of a stronger sense of presence and deeper immersion for the players. In the announcement, the company talked about the simplified setup and the improved ease-of-use of the PS5 VR. This time, the company has revealed the details on the PS5 VR controllers through a blog post on Sony PS’s official website.

The All-New PS5 VR

On February 23rd, Sony gave out some information on its upcoming launch, the VR for PS5. The company said that the new VR will have a simple setup, and a single cord is enough to connect the PS5 with the VR. The next-generation VR got some new and innovative changes made to it, like a better resolution to provide an even better visual experience, tracking, input, etc. Sony also talked about its new controllers, including some of the DualSense features.

PS5 VR Controllers

According to Sony, the new VR controllers are the main attraction of its next-generation VR for PlayStation. These controllers are the reflection of what Sony has been trying to deliver to its customer in the form of Virtual Reality. The controllers are incorporated with the features of DualSense and are going to change the feel and realistic experience of gaming for the PS5 VR players.

PS5
Image Source: blog.playstation.com
Image Credit: Sony Interactive Entertainment

The Innovative Design

The design of the controller is completely different from the traditional gaming remotes. It is of the shape of an ‘orb’ as described by Sony and is a two-piece set that goes into both left and right hands. The controllers are based on the concept of ergonomics, such that these are comfortable to hold for a longer time. The team behind the design of the controller made sure to test the controllers on different sets of hands to make them fit on every size of hands.

“SIE’s Product, Engineering, and Design teams have collaborated to build our new VR controller from the ground up to make a huge leap from current-gen VR gaming. Prototypes of our new VR controller will be in the hands of the development community soon, and we can’t wait to see what ideas they come up with and how the controller helps bring their imagination to life!” said Hideaki Nishino, the head of the platform planning and management at PlayStation.

New Features Introduced

The new controllers have inherited the adaptive trigger technology from the DualSense PS5 controller to add the palpable tension and make the gaming experience even more realistic. According to Sony, with the new controllers, there is no restriction for the players on how they should move their hands to play the games. The controllers come with haptic feedback and finger touch detection, and the controllers have a ring at the bottom of the controller. The headset of the VR set will track the controllers through this ring. The touch-sensitive areas included in the controllers are made to detect where the players place their thumb, index, and middle fingers.

Talking about the buttons on the left and the right controller, the left controller includes the usual triangle and square buttons, L1, L2, and a Create button as well as an analog stick. The right controller includes the other analog stick. It has similar cross and circle buttons, R1, R2 like the traditional controllers, and also the Options button. The L1 and R1 buttons on the controllers have been labeled as “grip”. This grip button is to pick up items in-game.

For now, Sony has only talked about the controllers, and there is no information on the PS5 VR headset as yet. Though the testing of the next-generation is currently going on, there is no news of if Sony will launch the PS5 VR any time sooner or in 2021. Since the information on the VR controllers is already out, we can expect the company to reveal the information on the VR headset in the coming months.

Google Play Store

Google’s initiative to cut Play Store fee might help ‘boutique’ apps but not big developers

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There are thousands of developers around the world that are new in the business world and face struggle due to the 30 percent fee for their apps in the Google Play Store. For new developers, cutting 30 percent fee is a lot as compared to their annual revenue. So, Google has decided to bring down the fees from 30 percent to 15 percent for the developers whose annual revenue is less than $1 million. However, for the big developers, the fees will stay intact to 30 percent fees for putting their apps on Google Play Store.

This new amendment by Google will come into action from 1st July 2021. The new reduction in commission fees by Google will affect the new start-ups, individual developers, and boutique firms in a very positive way, says Manjunath Bhat, Senior Director Analyst, Gartner to The Indian Express. He also added that “It will have little to no impact on large established application development companies in India.” (The Indian Express)

Boosting Developer Success

Sameer Samat, Vice President of Product Management, Google has written in a blog post on 16th March 2021 about how Google appreciates helping new developers make a big and sustainable business. Google always looks forward to helping new brands establish and support them with powerful marketing tools. This is because building a brand from scratch and putting the app on the record is not a very easy task. He also mentioned that Google is constantly striving to help these new developers bring their innovative ideas into real life and “give them an added boost.”

Google Play Store
Image Source: fiverr.com

He has specifically mentioned that the deduction of the commission fees from 30 percent to 15 percent is only for the first $1 million revenue earned by a developer each year. With the huge reduction in commission fees, around 99 percent of the total global developers will have a huge impact on their businesses. And, this amount of figure can be used by the developers to scale up their business, effective marketing implementations, hiring new employees, expanding geographically, etc.

Why cut the commission fees?

In an early-stage business, the investment is always high to set the business, hire people, create a position, and marketing. So, with the reduction in the commission fees, the developers will have a much stable early-stage start-up and open more doors for them to succeed. Google thinks that this is the first step on behalf of the company to help each and every developer out there. More details will be shared regarding this incentive in the upcoming months. Google Play and Android together are trying to build a better ecosystem thus scaling up to more business and uplifting the developers’ community. Moreover, small businesses contribute significantly to the GDP of a nation, hence if they start growing rapidly it will benefit the economy of the country.

Similar initiatives by Apple

Apple also took a similar initiative last year as the company brought the commission rate down to 15 percent from 30 percent as well. But, there is a difference in how Apple proceeded with the Apple Store Small Business Program. For the Apple Store, the reduction rate is only applicable to those who make less than $1 million a year in terms of annual sales. Once they start selling above $1 million, they have to pay the standard 30 percent fees. But, Google is considering a 50 percent reduction in commission fees on the first $1 million regardless of the total revenue earned by the developer.

In the last few months, both Google and Apple have come under big allegations because of their fees and other rules. It is true that these two tech giants control more or less the entire smartphone market and the tech industry. So, many developers have no option but to abide by the rules laid by these two companies. (The Indian Express). With the reduction rate in Google’s commission fees for Play Store, many people have made several positive comments on it.

For instance, Rajan Navani, Vice Chairman and Managing Director of JetSynthesys, said, “I think in a way it helps support the Indian ecosystem, especially the smaller developers.” He also added that “ It’s a good move because with new developers coming in, more companies will engage with citizens through digital payments.” The main target of taking this initiative is to give developers better chances to scale their business and overall democratizing access to Play Store in India.

AMD Ryzen Pro 5000

AMD launches new Ryzen Pro 5000 series processors especially for professional laptops

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AMD announced on 16th March 2021 about the launch of AMD Ryzen Pro 5000 Series Mobile processors, thus bringing the Zen 3 architecture for business class laptops. With this new chip paired with Zen 3 core, the business laptops will become more efficient and provide uncompromising performance. A highly efficient laptop is a prerequisite in the professional world especially after how the pandemic has changed our lifestyle. The new Ryzen Pro 5000 Series chip will be paired with the designer’s suite of Pro technologies with high-security bits and fueled by the latest CPU design.

According to the company, the new series of chips for business-class laptops is a solution for working remotely. While the entire world has started working remotely, the demand for high security has also increased as the work environment is getting distributed widely. And, with the help of the AMD Ryzen Pro 5000 series, the laptops can suffice all the needs of professionals for maintaining quality performance and high-security features.

AMD Ryzen Pro 5000 Mobile Processors Series Security features

In a statement by Saeid Moshkelani, senior vice president and general manager, Client Business Unit, AMD, he said, “The new AMD Ryzen Pro 5000 series mobile processors significantly increase the capabilities of ultrathin enterprise notebooks and deliver best-in-class user experiences with leadership performance, exceptional battery life and robust security features for every work environment.” The main two improvements focused on in these new series of chips are remote work management and improved security.

Ryzen Pro 5000
Image Source: techpowerup.com

The new chips are strengthened by multi-layered security with AMD Shadow Stack, Secured Core PC, and FIPS 140-3 certification. The AMD Shadow Stack will help the system to mitigate malware attacks by hardware-enabled protection. The security system will also have deep integration with Microsoft and OEMs. Apart from this, the Memory Guard will enable system memory encryption to bring down attacks and it will automatically be enabled on Microsoft Secured-Core PCs.

Performance and efficiency

With improved security, the AMD Ryzen Pro 5000 Mobile Processors series also excel in efficiency and multi-threaded performance. The AMD Ryzen 7 Pro 5850U processor is coming with 8 cores and 16 threads. This processor will offer high-level CPU performance with a 57 percent increase in multi-threaded performance. This processor will also enhance the productivity and overall performance of the laptop by 23 percent as compared to the existing competition in the market. Though working remotely from home doesn’t call for battery trouble, the processor also comes with an improved battery life of 17.5 hours.

The users can expect the arrival of these new chip embedded laptops from HP and Lenovo from the second quarter of 2021. AMD also expects the sale of AMD-powered enterprise notebook will increase by at least three folds by the end of this year. There are three models of this new series expected to roll out, namely, AMD Ryzen 7 Pro 5850U, 5650U, and 5450U. All of these have Zen 3 architecture. The processors are also featuring 18-months of planned software stability and 24-months of planned availability.

Statements of HP and Lenovo

With both HP and Lenovo to integrate this new AMD processor in their laptops, Andy Rhodes, Global Head, Commercial Systems and Display Solutions, HP, said that “ HP is committed to empowering employees and IT teams everywhere, and our continued work with AMD leads with innovation to deliver powerful and secure computing experiences to keep people connected and productive at home, in the office, or both.”

Jerry Paradise, vice president, Global Commercial Portfolio & Product Management, Lenovo PCSD, said that “At Lenovo, we have a long tradition of providing our enterprise customers with innovative systems that deliver excellent performance and security and we are pleased to continue delivering on this promise with new laptops powered by the latest AMD mobile processors,”

About AMD

AMD started its journey in 1969 as a Silicon Valley start-up. The company’s primary goal was to develop cutting-edge semiconductor products and has evolved with time. Currently, the company is focused on building high computing, graphics, and visualization technologies. Lisa Su is the current President and CEO of the company. The main products of the company are CPU, GPU, microprocessors, SOCs, motherboard chipsets, embedded processors, solid-state drivers, etc.