Gone are the days when smartphones were just sold in either black or white – manufacturers are offering devices in more diverse colors to attract a wider audience. Google had the Really Blue Pixel last year that really turned eyes.
Samsung has now announced that it is releasing a new color for the Galaxy S8 called Burgundy Red and it looks absolutely incredible.
The back, frame, and buttons of the Burgundy Red Galaxy S8 feature a very bright red color and stands out. It’s something that is sure to turn heads and would appeal to those looking for something more vibrant than the usual offerings.
Unfortunately, it seems Samsung is only releasing the new color in South Korea. The company hasn’t indicated it will launch in other markets but we can’t completely rule it out, especially with the Deep Sea Blue Note 8 appearing in the US.
Here’s hoping the device makes it over to the western world, but it would have been nice to see the device at launch.
Since its debut in 2016, Pokémon Go has become one the most successful mobile games of all times. But what what can we expect next from its developer? We’re glad you asked because, Niantic just announced it is working on a follow-up title. No, it’s not a Pokémon Go sequel, but something quite different.
The developer has partnered up with Warner Brothers Interactive Entertainment and the development team at WB Games San Francisco to create a new AR game which takes inspiration from J.K Rowling’s magical Harry Potter universe.
The game will be titled Harry Potter: Wizards Unite and according to the official announcement post will allow users to explore their real-world neighborhoods and cities to discover and fight legendary beasts, learn spells and team up with other players against the forces of evil.
Obviously, we can expect a lot of elements found in Pokémon Go to make the transition into the upcoming Harry Potter title, but Niantic assures us that the new game will also bring new technology and gameplay mechanics.
Warner Bros. and Niantic have also launched the official Harry Potter: Wizards Unite website, where fans can register with their personal email in order to be kept up to date with the latest news regarding the upcoming game.
According to an analysis released by consulting firm Counterpoint last month, China’s leading smartphone maker, Huawei surpassed Apple’s handset sales for the first time in June and July, thus becoming the world’s second-largest smartphone brand.
Intriguingly, Huawei managed to achieved this feat, even thought it has maintained a small presence in one of the largest smartphone markets in the world, the United States, in which it has been selling mainly products at lower price ranges through retail chains such as Best Buy or Amazon.
You see so far, US carriers – which distribute more than 80% of handsets in the country, were pretty reluctant to work with Huawei due to the security concerns associated with its networking equipment. But according to a new report, this is bound to change soon.
The folks at XDA-developers obtained a bunch of firmware files which revealed that one of Huawei’s latest flagships – the Mate 10 Pro – is apparently headed for AT&T. The firmware is named BLA-A09-att-us and represents a slight deviation from the international (single SIM) version, the BLA-L09. This can be taken as an indication that the AT&T version will be a little bit different, although we don’t have any further information on the topic at the moment.
The uncovered firmware also reveals the AT&T Huawei Mate 10 Pro comes pre-installed with the usual AT&T apps and interestingly is also pre-loaded with Mozilla Firefox, as well as Google Chrome.
For those who aren’t familiar with the Huawei Mate 10 Pro, this is one of the company’s latest flagships which was unveiled alongside the standard Mate 10, last month.
The phone boasts a 6-inch bezel-less display with 2160 x 1080 resolution and 18:9 aspect ratio. It also packs a powerful Huawei-made Kirin 970 SoC, 6GB of RAM and a Leica-branded dual-camera (20MP+12MP, f/1.6, optical image stabilization, 2x lossless zoom and phase detection & laser autofocus). The phone runs Android 8.0 Oreo out of the box and includes a 4,000 mAh battery under the hood.
When will this high-end phone make a debut on the US market, you ask? An earlier report dating back from August claimed that Huawei and AT&T were planning to launch a flagship phone sometime in early 2018, so that’s when we can expect to see the phone arrive in the US. The Huawei Mate 10 Pro is offered with a €799 price tag in Europe, so we can assume it will be sold for $799 in the States.
Unfortunately for Google, the Pixel 2 XL has been the focus of many issues and it seems yet another problem has surfaced around the screen flashing when unlocking their device.
According to a post on the Google Product Forums, some people are reporting issues that show the screen flashing when unlocking their device or when the screen wakes up to show notifications.
The original poster who included the above video says that it doesn’t happen all the time but that the issue happened almost immediately after initial setup. It seems that rebooting the phone alleviates the problem slightly but the issue comes back after a few hours. It seems that even performing a factory reset doesn’t help so appears to be a hardware problem with the Pixel 2 XL screen.
As with most of these issues, as soon as one person reports it, many more seem to chime in. Some users have reported that turning off the ambient display setting resolves the issue, but isn’t exactly my idea of a fix.
Google are yet to respond to the issue so we’ll keep an eye on how this progresses. Drop us a comment below if you’ve seen the issue on your device.
T-Mobile on Wednesday confirmed that is the exclusive cellular backup provider for the Nest Secure. Starting from November 10, customers can purchase a T-Mobile Nest security pack which includes the alarm system, camera, sensors, key fobs, and more.
The Nest Secure alarm system is tough on bad guys and easy on you. Arm and disarm however you like. No passcode required. Forget to arm? Get Remind Me alerts straight to your T-Mobile device.
The plan retails for $240 down with a $10 monthly charge and gives users cellular backup for the Nest Secure. Moreover, the bundle saves buyers hundreds of dollars over buying the hardware separately.
The T-Mobile Nest security pack includes:
The Nest Secure alarm system
Nest Guard base with keypad, motion detector, alarm and cellular backup service
Two Nest Detect motion and open/close sensors
Two Nest Tag key fobs
Nest Cam Indoor security camera with Nest Aware service, providing intelligent alerts and 10 days of continuous video recording.
The Nest Secure alarm system monitors your home, keeping an eye on things with always on built-in battery backup. And, should the power go out or your Wi-Fi connection fail, the cellular backup kicks in via T-Mobile’s network.
Chinese Android OEM Huawei announced the Mate 10 and Mate 10 Pro just a few weeks ago, but sources say that the pomp and circumstance for the two new smartphones is not over yet.
Huawei has been flexible in adopting trends in order to stay atop the smartphone world (it’s currently the third-largest global smartphone manufacturer), with the company using Samsung’s Super AMOLED panels long before Apple considered them for the iPhone X and, like Samsung, aiming for the foldable phone next. Now, the OEM is planning to push ahead with its own accessories for its Mate 10 lineup.
According to GizChina, Huawei could announce a “Made for Huawei” accessories program for its Mate 10 lineup to pattern what Google has done with its “Made for Google” accessories program with the Pixel 2 series. On the list of first accessories is a rumored USB Type-C-to-HDMI adapter to connect the Mate 10 or Mate 10 Pro and a desktop.
Of course, while the source does credit Google with a tailor-made accessories program, Android giant Samsung has been making accessories for its Galaxy smartphones for years (cases, battery packs, wireless charging pads, wireless charging stands, headphones, earbuds, etc.) and Huawei’s rumored adapter sounds similar in theory to what Samsung has done with the release of its DeX Station for the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy Note 8.
Huawei could always choose to name the accessories program “Made for Huawei” or “Made for Mate” (“Mate” being the smartphone series) and partner with third-party manufacturers to design cases and accessories specifically for the Mate 10 and Mate 10 Pro. A tailor-made accessories program could benefit Huawei in the long run, as its smartphones would have accessories available for smartphone buyers.
Little else is known about the “Made for Huawei” accessories program at this point, but with the Mate 10 and Mate 10 Pro being new kids on the smartphone block, we have no doubt that more information will pop up soon. It always does.
The new photo, courtesy of 24/7 Techie, shows the OnePlus 5T matching the press render while revealing the full body of the device (minus the top and bottom, mind you). From the photo, it appears as though the OnePlus 5T will maintain the dual camera trend it started in the OnePlus 5. The 5T will also feature its trademark alert slider and the volume rocker, but will remove the capacitive buttons and trade in the front-mounted, fingerprint sensor embedded home button for a back-mounted option.
The home button is completely absent here, in no small part due to OnePlus’s decision to go with a taller display (and hence, more space) on the front of the device. We don’t know if the fingerprint sensor will have a home/power button embedded in it, but with the power button on the far right of the device, it looks unlikely.
From the sheer look of the photo, the OnePlus 5T will have some height its direct predecessor did not, but we also presume the height of the device could feature a 6-inch screen with an 18:9 aspect ratio that has become the trend for nearly bezel-less smartphones. Other specs for the upcoming OnePlus 5T include 6GB/8GB RAM configurations, Qualcomm’s octa-core Snapdragon 835 SoC, 64GB/128GB of storage, improved dual rear cameras, and Android Oreo.
Many Chinese companies right now are advertising a number of deals in celebration of 11/11, the only day of the year that has… four ones in it, I suppose. It’s celebrated as Singles Day, and has quietly become one the biggest online shopping days of the year thanks to heavy support from the Chinese youth. Using the magic of online sales, though, anyone in the world can reap the benefits of Singles Day – and UHANS is here to help.
Both the UHANS Max 2 and MX will be on sale for Singles Day – and both of them have some pretty nice features for their respective price points.
5.2″ 720p bezel-less display | MT6580 Quad-Core processor | Android 7.0 | 2/16GB RAM/ROM (expandable) | 8MP rear camera | 5MP front camera | 3000mAh battery | Front-mounted fingerprint sensor
The best part about these phones, though, is the price – just $136.11 for the MAX 2, or $69.99 for the MX. Both of these promotional prices end on November 11th, though – so if you intend to buy one, do it sooner rather than later.
Editor Note: This article is a paid or sponsored publication. AndroidGuys has vetted the links at the time of publication; however, the articles should not be considered a blanket endorsement for the products or services highlighted herein. In some instances AndroidGuys may receive a small percentage of revenue derived from purchases through affiliate links. Money generated here is used to help pay for the site and/or staff. AndroidGuys does not endorse the products listed here.
Back at the Pixel 2 event, the new smartphones weren’t all that were shown off as we got new accessories and more. One of these new products was the Google Home Mini, which is Google’s response to the budget-friendly Amazon Echo Dot.
The best part, at least for those who bought the Pixel 2, was that Google announced it would be giving away a free Google Home Mini to everyone who bought either the Pixel 2 or Pixel 2 XL. The weird thing here is that instead of just throwing a code in the box, Google decided that it would send codes to users a few weeks after the devices arrived.
Now, those discount codes are arriving in email inboxes everywhere, making it possible for you to get your free Google Home Mini. It’s important to remember that there’s a chance that the email from Google landed in your Spam folder, so you’ll want to check that if you haven’t received anything yet.
From there, you will be directed to the Google Store where you can redeem the discount code on any of the three color options. You can pay for extra shipping, if you choose, but if you don’t mind waiting a bit, the Google Home Mini will be absolutely free.
So if you’ve already purchased the Google Home Mini, be sure to check your emails and get your freebie for buying Google’s 2017 flagship. Be sure to let us know which color you chose.
The ZTE Axon 7 was released last year and quickly became a big hit with Android fans. With a great list of specifications and more than fair price tag, the Axon 7 was a strong candidate for the title of “best affordable flagship of 2016”.
And obviously, many customers were hoping for a successor to the Axon 7 this year, but until now details on the matter have been scarce. Well, this week the Chinese company finally confirmed on Twitter that it will indeed launch a successor of the “incredibly successful” Axon 7.
Hi, Andrew. There will certainly be a follow on to the incredibly successful Axon 7.
No exact time frame was provided for the release, so fans were left pondering another dilemma: will the next-gen Axon (we’ll call it Axon 8, although the phone might end up being released under a totally different name) launch this year or in 2018?
We tend to believe ZTE won’t launch a second flagship in 2017. The company recently released the experimental Axon M foldable smartphone, so ZTE will probably focus on promoting this device for the time being.
But while we’re waiting for the Axon 8 to make an appearance in the wild, we can play a little guessing game and try to imagine how the Axon 7 successor will be like when it arrives:
New design?
The current Axon 7
Last year’s Axon 7 already features a great design. Like its predecessors, the Axon 7 comes featuring a full metal unibody construction with dual front-facing speakers on the front, housed under a distinctive grill pattern.
And even if it was built before the whole bezel-less frenzy started, the Axon 7 packs ultra-thin side bezels and relatively thin speaker grills above and below it.
Even so, in 2018, ZTE could quite possible adhere to the new smartphone design trend like most Android OEMs are doing these days and give the Axon 8 the “truly” bezel-less + 18:9 aspect ratio makeover. But that would mean the speakers on top would have to be eliminated.
Alleged Axon 8 front
According to a recent listing coming out of TENAA, this scenario seems quite unlikely. Judging by the documents, the Axon 8 (spotted as model number A2018) will look very much like the Axon 7 does. The front at least appears to be virtually unchanged, complete a 5.5-inch OLED panel with WQHD (2560 x 1440 resolution), stereo speakers and three on-screen touch-sensitive navigation buttons. However, the upcoming phone appears to be slightly thinner (151.7 x 75 x 7.7mm) and lighter (170 grams) than its predecessor, but not by a lot. the Axon 7’s measurements are 151.7 x 75 x 7.9 mm / 175 grams.
New processor?
The Axon M released this year includes a Snapdragon 821 processor, while the Axon 7 took advantage of a Snapdragon 820. So obviously, we expect the Axon 8 to make the transition to the next class of high-end Qualcomm processors and include a Snapdragon 835 chipset.
On top of that, ZTE might throw in extra RAM and storage versions next year. The Chinese device maker sold the phone in the US in two configurations – the standard with 4GB of RAM + 64GB storage and a limited edition one with 6GB of RAM + 128GB of storage. So in 2018, ZTE could offer the next-gen Axon 7 with a new 8GB of RAM + 256GB storage configuration, as well as make the 6GB of RAM + 128GB storage variant more widely available.
Dual cameras?
Alleged Axon 8 back
Obviously, we expect ZTE’s upcoming flagship to include dual-camera setup, like most premium devices launching today. This speculation is confirmed by the TENAA listing which reveals the Axon 8 could come boasting a dual camera setup comprised of a 20-megapixel sensor + a secondary 12-megapixel one. In contrast, the ZTE Axon 7 relied on a single 20-megapixel sensor.
Improved audio experience?
What made the Axon 7 special among smartphones? It’s obvious focus on audio experience. With its dual front-facing speakers with Hi-Fi audio chipsets and Dolby Atmos surround features, the phone offered one of the best audio experience around. And next year, we hope that ZTE will continue on the same path with the Axon 8.
Water resistance?
Adding water resistance to the Axon 8 could help ZTE attract OnePlus fans to its flagship. As you probably known, the OnePlus 5 does not offer IP65/68 certification, but if the Axon 8 would include such a feat, it would certainly boost its appeal.
