Page 612 – GadgetByte Nepal

iQOO 3 5G to land in India before anywhere else

GadgetByte

-

February 10, 2020

iQOO 3 5G to land in India before anywhere else

Back in January, we first heard about Vivo’s plan to spin-off iQOO as an independent brand in India. Recent news suggests iQOO is working to launch a new device in India called the iQOO 3 5G. The fact that the device might be premiered in India before anywhere else will make it the company’s first-ever outside its home country of China.

iQOO 3 5G overview

Soon after the rumor of spin-off, another rumor about iQOO India launching the first Snapdragon 865 device in India followed. Gagan Arora, iQOO’s Director of Marketing, has confirmed both of the news. A post on Weibo by official iQOO account has confirmed that iQOO 3 5G is on progress. We believe that the iQOO 3 5G is the same device that will be launched in India.

Also, check out ZTE 10s Pro with Snapdragon 865 chipset

Geekbench’s listing

Geekbench database has listed iQOO 3 5G as Vivo I1927. The device scored 914 points in Geekbench’s single-core test and managed 3,217 points in the multi-core test. The device will come with Snapdragon 865 chipset bundled with an X22 modem for 5G connectivity. Given the reputation of the brand, we were expecting the Snapdragon 865 processor. Geekbench’s database aligns perfectly with our assumptions. The database reveals the chipset to be Kona which, we all know, is the code name for the Snapdragon 865 chipset. It will be backed by 8GB of RAM and it will run Android 10 out of the box.

Check out LinearFlux Hupersonic launched in Nepal

TENAA listing

According to the listing by the Chinese TENAA website, the phone will come with a 6.4-inch tall AMOLED panel with a resolution of 1080 x 2400. It will support a refresh rate of up to 60Hz. The display will feature punch-hole for the 16MP front shooter. There will be an in-display fingerprint scanner for security. There will be a quad-camera setup at the back with a 64MP primary sensor. It will come with a battery over the capacity of 4,300 mAh and a 55W fast charger. It is also rumored that the phone will come with 128/256GB of the new UFS 3.1 storage.

iQOO 3 5G Specifications (rumored & confirmed)

Display: 6.4-inch AMOLED display with a resolution of 1080 x 2440 pixels
Rear Camera: Quad-camera, 64 MP primary lens
Front Camera: 16MP with f/2.0 aperture
Processor: Octa-core 7 nm Qualcomm Snapdragon 865
GPU: Adreno 650
RAM: 8GB
Storage: 128/256GB (UFS 3.1)
Software: Android 10
Battery: 4300 mAh, 55W Fast Charging
Security: Fingerprint (under display)

iQOO 3 5G official launch

The iQOO 3 5G launch will be launched within the month of February. But it isn’t going to be the only iQOO device in India this year. iQOO is also working on a 4G device. The device will not be 5G enabled and will come at a lower price.

Check out our unboxing video of the glorious ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo!

Xiaomi confirms the launch date for its upcoming Mi 10 series

GadgetByte

-

February 10, 2020

0

Xiaomi confirms the launch date for its upcoming Mi 10 series

The Mobile World Congress is almost here. With the event date nearing closer, we can not help but think about the smartphones we are going to witness. Major brands will be bringing their latest flagship phones to the event. Talking about both flagship and launch, we, finally, have a date for the launch event of the anticipated Mi 10 series. According to the latest report, the Xiaomi Mi 10 and Mi 10 Pro will initially be launched in China before it will officially available for the international market.

Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 in the Mi 10 series

Qualcomm announced its latest flagship processor Snapdragon 865 earlier this month. And even before we had the complete specs of the processor, many of the smartphone brands announced to integrate it into their next flagship phone. One such brand was Xiaomi. Company’s Co-Founder and Vice-Chairman, Bin Lin, announced at the Qualcomm Snapdragon Tech Summit 2019 that the Mi 10 will be powered by the latest flagship processor.

Also, Check out ZTE Axon 10s Pro announced with SD 865

Xiaomi Mi 10 Specs

Let’s start with what we already knew about the device – Snapdragon 865 processor. With this, we can almost be certain that the Mi 10 will be the first of many 5G smartphones that the company promised to launch this year. Qualcomm earlier clarified that the Snapdragon 865 will only come bundled with the X55 modem (for 5G connectivity) though it lacked an integrated modem. The Mi 10 will come with dual-mode 5G support. It will come with three different memory options – 8/128GB, 8/256GB, and 12/256GB.

Talking about the display, the Mi 10 will sport a 6.5-inch AMOLED panel. The display will come with the support of refresh rate up to 90Hz. While its predecessor, Mi 9, came with a notch to hold the selfie camera, we still don’t know if Xiaomi will give it continuity or will go with a punch-hole display instead.

Check out Nubia Red Magic 3 with 122Ghz display

The Mi 10 will house a quad-camera setup at the back. Sony IMX686 will be the primary sensor. In addition to this, there will be a 20MP ultra-wide sensor, a 12MP telephoto lens. We are yet to confirm if the device will come with a depth sensor or a macro sensor.

The phone will feature a 4,500 mAh battery. It will come equipped with a 40W fast charger. As per the rumors, the device will support 30W wireless fast charging and 10W reverse wireless charging. It will feature a linear vibration motor which provides faster acceleration than the widely used ERM motor.

Xiaomi Mi 10 Pro Specs

At the moment, information about the Xiaomi Mi 10 Pro is limited. We can confirm the Snapdragon 865 and dual-mode 5G. It will come with RAM of up to 16GB which will be based on the latest LPDDR5 technology. It will come with the 5,250 mAh battery. There will support for both 66W fast charging and 40W wireless fast charging. There will also be support for reverse wireless charging, detail of which is still unknown.

The Pro version is said to come with a 6.4-inch 120Hz OLED screen. It will also feature a quad-camera setup. The primary camera will have a 108MP camera. There will be a 48MP ultra-wide sensor, a 12MP telephoto lens. It will also feature either a macro lens or a depth sensor. Being a Pro version, it will only ship with 12GB of RAM. For internal storage, we can choose from 128GB, 256GB, or a 512GB variant.

Xiaomi Mi 10 Official Launch

Xiaomi, via its official Weibo account, has confirmed that Mi 10 will be unveiled in China on February 13. Unlike other unveilings by the company, this one will be an online program as pubic gathering in China is quite impossible due to coronavirus outbreak.

As for the international launch, Xiaomi will be bringing the new Mi 10 series to Mobile World Congress 2020. Xiaomi has allegedly sent out invitations for the launch event that is taking place on February 23. Though the specs haven’t been confirmed officially, we believe that the devices won’t vary significantly in terms of specs.

Check out your review of the Nokia 2.3!

LinearFlux officially enters Nepal with their Hypersonic Earbuds

GadgetByte

-

February 9, 2020

0

LinearFlux officially enters Nepal with their Hypersonic Earbuds

In Nepal, we actually don’t have many options to choose from. I’m not talking about the accessories store – we have a lot of them but the kind of products they offer. All the stores offer almost the same range of products and most of the time you don’t actually get what you are looking for. Even if you do, you will have to doubt about the originality of the products. I mean, there aren’t a lot of brands that are officially available in Nepal. If you feel my pain there’s a piece of good news for us. LinearFlux, a young company based on the USA, has now officially landed in Nepal with its Hypersonic Earbuds. With this, we have one more option to choose from next time we head to the store to buy some accessories.

Check out Asus dual-screen laptops in Nepal

About LinearFlux

LinearFlux, formed in 2014, is a brand based on the USA devoted to providing a range of quality accessories to the consumers. They debuted with LithiumCard which came with its own HyperCharging Technology – their take on ultra-fast charging. As of now, it has widened its portfolio of accessories. Some of its notable products include LithiumCard, Graphene series of power banks and charging cables, and Hypersonic earbuds.

Check out the launch of Accurate accessories in Nepal

LinearFlux in Nepal

The US-based brand has now officially landed in Nepal. IMS Group is the sole authorized distributor of LinearFlux in Nepal. As of now, they have brought LinearFlux Hypersonic True Wireless HD Earphones 2020.

LinearFlux Hypersonic Earbuds Overview

Hypersonic Wireless Earphone is among the latest products from the brand. The earphone is developed by Einstein and David, both of which were part of the team of Monster Products that worked to make Beats By Dr. Dre what it is now. But unlike the offerings from the Monster Products, LinearFlux hypersonic wireless earphones are designed to provide a quality experience at affordable prices.

The earphones come with LinearFlux DL01 Immersive Sound Engine which the company claims to provide better music clarity and bass. It comes with an IPx7 rating which means theoretically it can withstand water up to 1m depth. You can expect a playback time of around 6-8 hours per charge. It comes with Bluetooth 5 technology, beamforming microphone, and one-touch access for Alexa, Siri, and Google.

Check out the merger between software and hardware division in Microsoft

LinearFlux Hypersonic Earbuds Price & Availability

The price of LinearFlux Hyper-sonic True Wireless Earphone is NRs. 12,990. You can buy it form IMS showrooms in City Center and Tamrakaar Complex. It is also available in a few other retail outlets in New Road, Jwalakel, Chabahil, Kalanki, Pokhara, Butwal, and Narayanghat. If you don’t want to go through the hassle of visiting stores, you can buy it online from SmartDoko.com.

Check out our review of the Nokia 2.3!

Asus ZenBook Pro Duo with Dual 4K Display, i9 processor, RTX 2060 launched in Nepal

GadgetByte

-

February 9, 2020

0

Asus ZenBook Pro Duo with Dual 4K Display, i9 processor, RTX 2060 launched in Nepal

Nagmani International, the authorized distributor of Asus products in Nepal, has officially unveiled two dual screens laptops in the Nepali market. The Asus ZenBook Pro Duo UX581 and Asus ZenBook Duo UX481 are the latest dual-screen laptop from Asus that is intended for content creators. Both are available in the Nepali market via various laptop retail shops.

Asus ZenBook Pro Duo UX581 overview

This laptop can easily be considered one of the best of the lot. It has a 4K OLED touch screen (primary) along with a 4K touch secondary panel. The secondary panel in fact is stretched across the chassis.

Two touchscreen 4K screens will certainly require some fast processing and that is what you get as this laptop runs an overclockable Intel Core i9 (i9-9980HK) or a more common Intel Core i7 processor (i7-9750H).

It is further combined with Nvidia RTX 2060 graphics and a very fast nVME Gen 3 X4 SSD. The Asus ZenBook Pro Duo UX581 is a perfect laptop for productivity, content creation, and gaming too.

The laptop, apart from fulfilling the productivity needs of an individual, comes with a stylus, the ASUS-pen, as the company calls it. The pen is mostly targeted for the creators and artists out there who are fond of digital art. Additionally, both the displays support the stylus for use.

Similarly, the utility of a dual-screen extends other possibilities as well. The most impact can be for better implementation of content creating platforms like Premier Pro, After effects, Illustrator and the like. And because the screen has excellent color coverage, namely 100% DCI-P3 and 133% of sRGB, it’s content creation capabilities seem impressive to say at the least.

Asus ZenBook Pro Duo UX581Specifications

Display: 15.6-inch OLED UHD (3840 x 2160), 14-inch UDH (3840 x 2160) touch display
CPU: 2.4GHz Intel Core i9-9980HK or Intel Core i7- 9750H
Graphics: Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060, 6GB GDDR6 VRAM
RAM: 8GB/16GB/32GB DDR4
Storage: 256GB/512GB/1TB PCIe SSD
Ports: 1 x Thunderbolt 3(USB-C), 2 x USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type-A, HDMI 2.0, headphone/microphone jack
Weight: 2.5Kg
Battery: 8-cell, 71Wh

Asus ZenBook Pro Duo UX581 Price in Nepal

The i7 variant of Zenbook Pro Duo UX581 is priced at Rs. 359,000. It comes with 1TB of storage an 32GB of RAM. Similarly, the i9 variant of Zenbook Pro Duo is expected to be priced at Rs. 4,00,000.

Asus ZenBook Duo UX481 overview

Another Asus Dual-screen laptop to hit the Nepalese market is the Asus ZenBook Duo UX481. It is a toned-down version of the ZenBook Pro Duo. It features a 14-inch 1080P IPS display instead of 4K OLED on the Pro-model. Similarly, the secondary screen in this one is slightly small at 12.7-inches.

The CPU options for this one is either the Core i5-10210U or the Core i7-10510U. As for the graphics it has the Nvidia GeForce MX250 with the VRAM of 2GB. The RAM option is up to 16GB. So, the performance here doesn’t quite match the Pro-model.

Hence, the non-pro model is intended for users who want to be benefitted by the dual-display but do not need a powerhouse of a laptop. Also since, it has dual displays, like the Pro Duo, this one can be used for some serious multitasking. However, in terms of computing capabilities, it is not as powerful as the pro model and can only handle less demanding tasks, and games with its MX 250 graphics.

Asus ZenBook Duo UX481 Specifications

Display: 14.0-inch IPS FHD (1920 x 1080), 12.6-inch FHD (1920 x 1080) touch display
CPU: 1.8GHz Intel Core i7-10510U or 1.6GHz Intel Core i5-10210U
Graphics: Nvidia GeForce MX250, 2GB GDDR5 VRAM
RAM: 8GB/16GB/ LPDDR3
Storage: 256GB/512GB/1TB PCIe SSD
Ports: 1 x USB 3.1 Gen2 Type-C, 1 x USB 3.1 Gen2 Type-A, 1 x USB 3.1 Gen1 Type-A, HDMI, headphone/microphone jack, microSD card reader
Weight: 1.5Kg
Battery: 4-cell, 70Wh

Asus ZenBook Duo UX481 Price in Nepal

The Asus ZenBook Duo UX481 is available only in i7 variant with 16GB RAM and 1TB SSD. It is priced at Rs. 1,95,000.

ZTE Axon 10s Pro announced: world’s first smartphone with Snapdragon 865 & DDR5 RAM

GadgetByte

-

February 8, 2020

0

ZTE Axon 10s Pro announced: world’s first smartphone with Snapdragon 865 & DDR5 RAM

While we were all busy assuming Samsung Galaxy S20 as the first Snapdragon 865 phone, another device slipped right under our noses. As a matter of fact, ZTE has won the race against Samsung here. ZTE has announced the ZTE Axon 10s Pro. And yes it officially is the world’s first phone to have been announced with Snapdragon 865.

ZTE Axon 10s Pro overview

Except the chipset, most of the specs and the design too match that of the Axon 10 pro. It still sports a similar 6.47-inch AMOLED display with 1080p resolution. The screen has a waterdrop notch and as with smartphones with AMOLED screen these days, it too has an in-display fingerprint sensor.

As for the camera, the rear one has a 48MP primary sensor. Moreover, the setup also incorporates a 20MP wide-angle lens and an 8MP telephoto lens. And up front, there’s a 20MP selfie shooter housed in the notch.

It’s under the hood where the actual magic happens. As mentioned above, it has the Snapdragon 865 chipset whereas the Axon 10 Pro used Snapdragon 855. With this chipset, the Axon 10s pro receives a performance upgrade and also integrated 5G connectivity.

Other features include Wi-Fi 6 support and Link-Booster. The Link-booster helps to smoothly switch between network modes to enhance connectivity.

Furthermore, the maximum RAM/storage combo in this one will be of 12GB/256GB. However, there’s a 6GB/128GB variant as well. And both of them will be powered by a 4000mAh battery with Quick Charge 4.

ZTE Axon 10s Pro Specifications:

Design: Glass body front and back, Aluminum frame
Display: 6.47″ AMOLED display with resolution of 1080 x 2340 pixels
Rear Camera: Triple, 48 MP primary lens with f/1.7 aperture & PDAF + 8 MP telephoto lens with f/2.4 aperture + 20MP ultra-wide lens with f/2.2 aperture
Front Camera: 20MP with f/2.0 aperture
Processor: Octa-core 7 nm Qualcomm Snapdragon 865
GPU: Adreno 650
RAM: 6 GB, 12GB
Storage: 6GB/128 GB, 12GB/256GB, expandable
Battery: 4000 mAh,18W Fast Charging
Sensors: Fingerprint (under display), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass

ZTE Axon 10s Pro Pricing and Availability

Even though the phone was officially announced today, no specific date has been given for its release. Similarly, we do not know about the official prices either. However, speculation is that it will probably cost around $469. As for its price in Nepal, it might cost you Rs. 60, 000 if its current Nepal distributor Evolution Enterprises decides to bring it here in Nepal.

Get ready for another hidden camera technology from OnePlus!

GadgetByte

-

February 8, 2020

0

Get ready for another hidden camera technology from OnePlus!

There is a lot going on in the smartphone business these days. Smartphone companies are constantly competing against each other to come with the best new thing in the smartphone world. We have already seen bezel-less displays. Further, there are phones with notched display, punch-hole display, pop-up cameras, and even under-display camera. And still, brands aren’t satisfied. At the CES 2020, we saw Oneplus showcase disappearing cameras technology in Concept One. And now, there is another patent for hidden camera technology from Oneplus.

OnePlus Under-Display Camera

The patent of the new hidden camera, which has now gone viral, reveals that it was filed in May of 2019. The WIPO Global Design Database reveals that it was approved on February 4th of 2020.

The camera setup demonstrated in the patent file reveals phones with round camera modules. If it wasn’t for the arrangement of the camera sensor, one could easily mistake it for the OnePlus 7T camera. The sensors on the OnePlus 7T are placed horizontally inside the circular module whereas, in the patent, they are placed vertically. The patent also reveals four different models of the phone that may use the technology.

Also, check out Asus dual-screen laptops in Nepal

Working Mechanism

By the looks of it, the OnePlus hidden camera technology will hide the camera sensors when not in use. It is the same concept that OnePlus used in the Concept One. But this time, it isn’t using the expensive electrochromic glass technology. Instead, they seem to be using a plastic valve this time. The valve will cover the camera sensors when they aren’t in use. We don’t know the actual objective of the patent so far, but we believe the valve will help secure the sensors from environmental factors as well as accidental damage.

Check out Apples latest patent for foldable devices

Where’s the selfie camera, though?

The photos included in the patent file reveal phones with a bezel-less display. The front of the devices is completely occupied by the display. Since the screen doesn’t have either of the notch or the punch-hole, we predicted that it would come with a pop-up selfie camera. Interestingly, we didn’t notice any area form where the selfie camera can pop up. That’s not it – we don’t even see any buttons. The USB port is the only thing visible in the photos included in the patent.

Will we see it soon?

We still have so many questions about the patent. If OnePlus is trying to do something futuristic by not including the buttons and selfie camera on the surface of the display, it will not come any time soon. Also, a patent doesn’t guarantee a finished product. Is it for commercial phones or will OnePlus release yet another concept phone? Only time will tell.

Check out our comparison between Samsung Galaxy Note 10 and Note 10 Lite!

Moto G Stylus Announced: Motorola’s affordable Galaxy Note Alternative!

GadgetByte

-

February 8, 2020

0

Moto G Stylus Announced: Motorola’s affordable Galaxy Note Alternative!

Samsung’s Note device has always been a unique offering for smartphone enthusiasts. However, it does come with a hefty cost, usually around $1000. One might argue, it’s good only because there was virtually not a single competitor providing a similar device? A device with a stylus to be specific! That’s about to change as a new player, that goes by the name of Moto G Stylus, has just been announced. It costs $299, which is a fraction of what Samsung is asking for their Note devices.

Moto G Stylus Specs Overview

Despite currently having a mid-range lineup that is in total disarray and with only a few handful devices that can be branded as a success, Motorola is planning on going toe-to-toe against Samsung in this front with the Moto G Stylus.

Moto G Stylus is Motorola’s first phone with a Stylus pen. It is not pressure sensitive as the Galaxy Note devices and it lacks the Bluetooth connectivity too, but it gets the job done. There’s a Moto Note app with which you can write down notes, sketch, and doodle. There’s a hole on the right side where the Stylus is kept.

On to the specs, there’s a triple camera setup on the back. The primary lens is a 48MP f/1.7 sensor. The second lens is a 16MP ultra-wide Action Camera that shoots smooth wide-angle videos. You cannot shoot 16MP ultrawide images though, which is strange. The third is a 2MP macro lens.

Display-wise, you get a 6.4-inch FullHD+ 19:9 1080P IPS panel with a tiny punch hole residing on the left top. It houses a 16MP selfie snapper. Battery wise, you get a 4000mAh capacity with 10W charging done via a Type-C port.

In the performance department, the Moto G Stylus is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 665 chipset aided by 4GB RAM and 128GB eMMC storage. For the asking price of $299, I think Motorola should have gone with atleast 6GB RAM and Snapdragon 7-series chipset. They could have also offered a faster 18W charging. So, looking at the specs, it remains unclear if just a stylus be enough from Motorola’s side to compete with the Midrange phones priced at $300.

Motorola Moto G Stylus Specifications:

Display: 6.4-inch (2300×1080 pixels) FHD+ IPS LCD 19.17:9 Max Vision display
Chipset: Snapdragon 665
Memory: 4GB RAM, 128GB ROM, expandable memory up to 512GB with microSD
OS: Android 10
SIM: Dual SIM
Rear Camera(s): 48MP f/1.7, 1.6μm primary camera with Quad Pixel technology + 16MP Action Cam with f/2.2, 2.0μm 117° ultra-wide-angle camera with Quad Pixel technology, 2MP f/2.2, 1.75μm 2cm macro sensor, Laser autofocus (TOF)
Selfie Camera: 16MP (f/2.0, 1μm) front camera
Security: Fingerprint sensor (on the back)
Audio: 3.5mm audio jack, Dual stereo speakers tuned by Dolby, 2 Microphones
Connectivity: Dual 4G VoLTE, WiFi 802.11 ac (2.4GHz + 5GHz), Bluetooth 5, GPS + GLONASS, USB Type-C
Battery: 4000mAh battery with 10W charging

Motorola Moto G Stylus Price

The Moto G Stylus is priced at US$299 and will be first available in the U.S starting this spring. Availability for other markets including Nepal has not been detailed yet.

Hong Kong scientists develop a generator that produces 140V electricity from a drop of water!

Featured

GadgetByte

-

February 7, 2020

0

Hong Kong scientists develop a generator that produces 140V electricity from a drop of water!

Will technology help solve the crisis around us or just create more of it? This question or a different phrasing of the same thing arises whenever a group sits down to talk about technological development. And I won’t lie to you, many-a-times I cannot decide which side to choose. However, a new development has really restored my faith in technology. A new report published claim that scientists have created an electricity generator which can generate 140V electricity that can power 100 LED bulbs from one drop of water.

Yup, you read that right. 100 LED bulbs powered by a single raindrop. This development has set a new bar for energy-harvesting technologies.

Basically, this new droplet-based technology has a very high energy-conversion efficiency. And it’ll hopefully help us all tackle the growing energy crisis of the world.

140V electricity from one drop of water

This exciting research was performed by a group of scientists at the City University of Hong Kong. Their report shows that a drop of 100 microlitres of water released from a height of 15cm can generate a voltage of 140V.

Now hydro-power is not a new thing. It is already used in various parts of the world including Nepal. However, its potential has not been fully realized due to the limitations in the current tech. But now, maybe this development will be “the“ big breakthrough in solving the energy crisis.

Also read: The merger between Microsoft’s hardware and software divisions

Why is this new generator better?

Currently, droplet energy generators make use of the triboelectric effect to generate electricity. This basically means that electricity is generated when two materials come into contact with each other. However, it has a very low energy conversion efficiency due to the small size of the charge.

This is where the new research jumps in with its solutions for the limitations. Firstly, they have used PTFE, a material with a quasi-permanent electric charge. When droplets hit the surface of PTFE, a charge builds up gradually in its surface, until it reaches a saturation point. This feature helps to negate the bottleneck of the past approaches.

Secondly, this new design somewhat resembles the field-effect transistor. The generator has two electrodes. One made of aluminum and other made up of indium tin oxide with PTFE coating.

As soon as water droplets hit the PTFE coated electrode, the original setup gets converted into a closed-circuit. As a result, the stored charge is released and electricity is generated.

Furthermore, reports suggest that this generator is not affected by lower relative humanities. This concept can be used on any surface where liquid particles come into contact with solid. Basically, places such as boat hulls, coastlines, and even umbrellas. Now, this is something that everyone should look forward to! Do you think such technology where a significant volume of electricity generated from one drop of water is sustainable in the long run? Share your thoughts with us.

You can find the full findings of the team here.

Check out our review of the Nokia 2.3!

Microsoft announces merger between its hardware and Windows divisions

GadgetByte

-

February 7, 2020

0

Microsoft announces merger between its hardware and Windows divisions

Big changes might be on the way for Microsoft Surface laptops. And that’s all because of a major announcement made by Microsoft today. They have announced that they will be merging their hardware and Windows team.

Labeled as ‘Windows + Devices’, this division will be headed by Panos Panay. The creation of Surface laptops is credited to Mr. Panay. Therefore, this merger spells big things for Surface Laptops. Previously, he leads the hardware division that was responsible for keeping the Surface laptops updated.

However, the merger will not take place officially until February 25. The news about the merger was sent out via a mail by Mr. Panay.

His excitement regarding this merger was clearly reflected in the mail. Basically, this merger between the hardware and the Windows team has been put into action in order to provide the best user experience. One, that runs all the way from OS to Microsoft apps and service connected devices.

Currently, most laptop manufacturers are going all in for dual screens. And Microsoft too hopes to be a part of it. Thus, they believe that designing hardware and software together is the key to it.

Why is Microsoft planning this merger??

Hopefully, this merger leads to the success of long term Windows bets. These include dual-screen, silicon diversity, connectivity, app platform, and much more. Moreover, a single point of leadership in Windows Client Experience might also lead to accelerated innovation and improved execution.

This merger is in line with what has been Microsoft’s sort of key policy since 2012. They have placed special emphasis on taking advantage of their hardware products. Thus, it makes sense for them to follow the same steps for Surface laptops too.

$microsoft sufrace pro 7 silver content creation display$

Currently, the Surface lineups generate almost $4 billion in revenue for Microsoft. And the primary objective of this merger would be to better it.

Furthermore, this merger will have another domino effect. That is, Joe Belfiore, the previous head of the Windows team will now lead the Microsoft Office team.

Let’s hope this merger leads to much better days for the Surface lineups and Microsoft in the future.

Apple’s latest foldable patent may redefine “foldability”

GadgetByte

-

February 6, 2020

0

Apple’s latest foldable patent may redefine “foldability”

In 2019, we witnessed the advent of the age of the foldable phones. It all started with a concept which has since been implemented by some of the biggest names in the smartphone world. But this technology does come with issues of damage and durability. Companies are working on it too. Samsung recently patented UTG to make the screen more scratch-resistant and durable. While Samsung is working on to add a protective layer on top of the screen, Apple sets to redefine the technology with its latest patent for foldable devices.

Problems with the foldable phones so far

The foldable smartphones launched so far are far from perfect. For instance, let us look at the Samsung Galaxy Fold which the company had to postpone the launch because of the issues. For a foldable phone, durability is the primary concern. When you fold your phone in half, your phone may develop creases. The creases, in the long run, may damage the phone. Also, the gap around the hinges (or the folding mechanism) may cause damage to the phone by allowing air, dust, water and other external factors to enter the phone through it.

Check out the upcoming Samsung Z Flip

Latest foldable phone patent from Apple

Apple’s solution to the above-mentioned problems is an entirely new foldable mechanism. It has been documented in its patent titled “Electronic devices with flexible displays and hinges”. The patent first caught the attention of the public after it was published by the US Patent and Trademark Office.

Design

The patent reveals a display supported by housing that consists of two flaps. The flaps are further divided into two portions- the first portion and the second portion. The display overlaps an axis. In an unfolded configuration, the two flaps of the display will provide support to the display.

Check out the latest patent for iMac

Apple foldable hinge patent — Image credit: Android Authority

To fold the display, one must rotate the two flaps of the housing towards each other. while folding the device, the display bends along the axis and the two flaps maintain a minimum bend radius (adequate distance between the two flaps) courtesy of the second portion of each flap rotating relative to the first portion.

Hinge mechanism

The display will come with a flexible OLED display (Organic Light Emitting Diode). The two flaps will extend parallel to the display. The hinge mechanism or the folding mechanism may be based on a rack-and-gear arrangement or other arrangements that maintain a minimum distance between the two flaps.

We are unsure if Apple will actually implement this design in its upcoming devices. This isn’t the first time Apple has filed a patent for a foldable device. Back in 2019, Apple was granted a patent for the same. But the patent does ensure that Apple is interested in the concept of foldable smartphones. And possibility remains that Apple may indeed release a foldable iPhones somewhere in the future.

Check out our comparison between Samsung Note 10 and Samsung Note 10 Lite