KB-Technologies

Will the Samsung Galaxy S8 have a 3.5mm headset jack, or won't it? We've already heard some rumors saying the Korean company will once again emulate Apple and ditch the analog connector, and today a new report might have confirmed that. Not directly, though. Samsung is now said to be launching wireless in-ear headphones alongside the Galaxy S8, whenever the smartphone becomes official. It's still unclear whether these will be bundled with the smartphone, or sold separately (or both). The rumor also doesn't explicitly say we're talking about truly wireless headphones, like Samsung's own Gear IconX or Apple's AirPods. However, it does claim that Samsung really wants to put out a product to compete with the AirPods, so we assume these could be truly wireless after all. Harman audio tech may be inside the headphones, but probably won't, since Samsung's acquisition of Harman has happened recently and the headphones were probably alread

Windows 10 quickly made gamer fans thanks to perks like DirectX12. Now a new report has it the OS will become even more game-friendly. According to Microsoft tipster WalkingCat , the latest build of Windows 10 (14997) has a DLL file named “gamemode.dll”. Of course this doesn’t mean that such feature is ready but he already voiced opinions about such mode months ago. It appears as if the mode will allow Windows to adjust resources allocated to the CPU and graphics card to prioritize games giving better framerates. According to sources the mode will work much like Xbox One’s handling of a game - all the resources are working for the currently running window. Launch date is not announced yet since and there hasn’t even been testing reported. If such feature is available it could mean that users would have another reason to switch from Windows 7, something that Microsoft is fighting for in the last two years. Source | Via

A new Nokia phone has passed China Compulsory Certification (3C). Listed as TA-1000 from HMD Global, the device comes with standard 5V/2A charging support, but that's about all the info we get here. While 3C doesn't reveal any of the handset's key specifications, it is likely not a flagship smartphone given the lack of fast charging support. So, it's possible that we're looking at the Nokia E1 here. The device is rumored to be powered by an entry-level Snapdragon chipset and sport a 5.5-inch display. Other rumored specs include 1GB RAM and Android 7.0 Nougat. Via

Qualcomm officially announced via a series of tweets the debut of Snapdragon 835 at a CES keynote next week. The highly anticipated chipset will come with Quick Charge 4 technology which will give devices 5 hours of battery life with 5 minutes of charging. Qualcomm also claims that a smartphone with the CPU could be charged from 0 to 50% within 15 minutes. The Technologies division of the San Diego-based company stated that every fourth consumer thinks time for charging is too long and their engineers aimed to solve specifically this problem. QSnapdragon 835 will provide consistent performance and battery usage both to devices with USB Type-C and USB Power Delivery. The chipset will also have divided charge current for more efficient thermal dissipation in order to optimize power delivery. Another innovation that is worth mentioning is INOV (Intelligent Negotiation for Optimum Voltage) - the new version is actually an algorithm that in any given moment read

Huawei has started pushing out the Nougat beta update to its Nova smartphone. Currently rolling out in China, the update arrives as firmware version B321 and is being rolled out to select 500 Nova (B153 variant) units. It's worth mentioning that the Huawei G9 Plus started getting the same beta build a couple of days ago. The P9 Plus, on the other hand, also started receiving a Nougat beta build (version B352) yesterday. In case you missed, the P9 and Mate 8 have already received the final Nougat update. Via

The last days have been quite interesting for Samsung Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge users. Samsung rolled out several updates to the Android Nougat beta program with the 5th version being available in UK and South Korea since yesterday. According to a Weibo source the beta updates are going to end soon as Samsung is now ready to deliver a stable version to all flagship devices. The Korean manufacturer didn’t officially confirm the end of the test program.     Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge with Android 6.0 Marshmallow Of course wrapping up the project doesn't mean an update is going to happen instantly. Before rolling out to Galaxy S7/S7 Edge users the update must be certified and approved. Here's hoping it won't be long though. Source

Samsung is having a few cool monitor announcements lined up for CES 2017. The centerpiece seems to be the CH711. The particular model offers a significantly curved (1,8000R curvature) 2560 x 1440 pixel panel in 27-inch and 31.5-inch sizes. Other notable features on the monitor, include a wide 178-degree viewing angle and 125% sRGB coverage. The ergonomics also seem well thought-out, with a stand that can be used for cable management and an optional 90-degree panel rotation for a somewhat awkward vertical curved experience. Judging by the looks, promotional photos and general description, the CH771 is not exactly a gaming monitor, by design. Sadly, no extra info on response times, refresh tares, inputs or support for gaming-specific features, such as G-Sync or FreeSync has been provided yet, but Samsung promises the panel will be suitable for gamers, as well. In its press release, Samsung also mentions a few other quantum dot panels that will be showcased

Those waiting for Super Mario Run on Android are about to get their prayers answered. The game has landed on the Play Store, although for nowit is only available for pre-registration. All this does is alert you when the game is available for download. There is no information on when the game will actually be available for download. Super Mario Run released on iOS earlier this month to a lot of fanfare. The first proper game from Nintendo for the mobile platform, it shot to the top of the most downloaded lists on the App Store around the world. Eventually people realized that the game isn't what they were expecting and the $10 purchase price after the first three levels was also hard pill to swallow for many, which resulted in a flurry of 1 star reviews. It still remains a popular title on the App Store. It's likely that the Android version of the game will be identical in every way, including the pricing. At least this time customers will be aware of w

A new HTC smartphone has been certified by the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG). The listing reveals that the device carries a model number of 2PYR1XX. Like usually, the Bluetooth listing for the phone doesn't reveal anything related to its specification, so it's difficult to say which handset it is. However, going by what the HTC rumor mill has been churning out recently, the 2PYR1XX could well the be the HTC X10. From what we've gathered until now, the X10 is powered by Helio P10 SoC and sports a 5.5-inch full HD display. Other rumored specs include a 13MP rear camera and 3GB RAM. It is expected to be made official sometime next month. Source

Microsoft unveiled the Surface Studio PC at an event in October, and the device started shipping late last month. The Surface Studio is Microsoft's response to Apple's iMacs, boasting top specs in the all-in-one form factor. It has a 28-inch touchscreen with with 4,500 x 3,000 resolution, a zero-gravity hinge mechanism, a quad-core Intel Skylake processor, the Nvidia GeForce 980M GPU, 32GB of RAM, a 2TB hybrid disk, and a 2.1 integrated sound system. With those innards you'd expect it to be expensive, and indeed it is. The Surface Studio starts at $2,999, and you can configure it up to $4,199. Hence, you shouldn't expect its sales to be in the millions. That said, a new report coming from "Taiwan-based supply chain makers" claims that Microsoft has actually managed to sell twice as many Surface Studio PCs as expected. While the initial sales projections for the fourth quarter of 2016 were for 15,000 units, demand was much better t

If you have Windows 10 on your computer, you're probably not loving what Microsoft has done with the way its OS handles updates. Namely, the fact that you can't choose when to have new updates installed - the process is as automatic as it gets. If you do wish you could control when updates are installed on your system, you'll be happy to know that things could be changing in the future. In fact, the Windows 10 Creators Update that's coming out for free in March will let you "pause updates" for up to 35 days at a time. This has been revealed by people who are currently running a leaked pre-release build of the Creators Update, and have spotted a new entry in the Advanced Options menu for Windows Update Settings. As you can see from the screenshot above, there's a new Pause Updates switch in there, which if you turn on will make Windows not install any more updates for the next 35 days. Windows Defender definition updates aren't c

Samsung will be killing the remaining Note7 units in Korea and so will do T-Mobile in the USA. The next carriers to proceed with the kill order are AT&T and Verizon on January 5, and Sprint on January 8. Now it seems Samsung Malaysia will be doing the same with the phablet on December 31. The Galaxy Note7 users in Malaysia, who didn't return or exchange their phablets and decided to keep using them, are now receiving push notifications for a final power down. The phone's battery will be powered down to 0% by 9PM on December 31. There is nothing the owners can do to stop that, so they should backup their data immediately and return the phone. The Samsung Galaxy Note7 keepers in Malaysia are still eligible for a full refund or a Galaxy S7 edge exchange, so they should probably do that. We guess Samsung will proceed with killing the active Note7 worldwide in the upcoming months or weeks, so if anyone of our readers is still using such device - the

Yi Technology who called themselves Your Innovator has announced the first mainstream full carbon fiber smart drone. It will be showcased at CES 2017 next week. While most drones today have quad rotors or other symmetric amount of blades, the new gadget called Erida Drone will be a tricopter. According to Yi the lightweight frame and design would allow the drone to operate at speeds up to 75 mph. The camera settings could be controlled by users manually while the drone is in air. The control of the gadget is done via a mobile app. Information about price and availability is still to be revealed but we think that carbon-bodied 75 mph flying drone could be sold both as a camera and silent assassin. Source | Via

This summer we told you about an investigation by the Fair Trade Comission in South Korea involving Qualcomm and unfair business practices. Reuters now reports that we have a final verdict - the company will be fined 1.03 trillion won (approx. $854 million). The decision will be challenged in court, the chip maker said later. This is the largest fine ever issued by the Korean FTC (KFTC). They say Qualcomm abused its dominant market position and forced phone makers to pay unnecessarily high costs for patents as part of their deal to provide chipsets. The regulator added more: The accusation also includes restricting competition by limiting licensing of its standard essential patents to rivals such as Intel, Samsung Electronics and MediaTek. KFTC ordered Qualcomm to renegotiate with rivals on patents and supply agreements. This means that the chip maker will have to resign its deals with Apple, Samsung and Huawei. Investigations began back in 2014 when anonymous

Samsung appears to be working on a pair of interesting new wearables. Аt least that is what a recently unearthed set of patent filings hints at. The first device, mentioned in these documents looks to be a more sporty type of accessory, likely complete with a single thin strap to hold it in place. Said strap is described as a rather interesting input control. The user can interact with the wearable by shifting its position, relative to the strap. A second strap could also potentially be introduced to the setup for an extended or at least different input scheme. The patent also provides graphical representations of some suggested usage scenarios for the device, including wrapping it around your neck, or hanging it on an object, likely with varied functional intentions. But it is the second patent that arguably spikes more interest. It showcases something similar to a bracelet, based around a foldable panel. The Korean giant has been busy patenting various be

An image alleged to be of the front panel of the Sony Xperia XZ (2017) has leaked. While the image is blurry, it does give an idea about the placement of the front camera, proximity sensor, as well as the speaker. It also reveals that the handset will feature a near bezel-less design. Sadly, nothing else - including specs, pricing, and availability - is known about the device at the moment, but, needless to say, we'll keep you updated as and when we hear more about it. Via

A new activity challenge has been launched for users of the Apple Watch. To earn the special achievement, dubbed Ring in the New Year , users will have to close all three Activity rings each day or any full week (Monday to Sunday) in the month of January. Those completing the challenge successfully will also earn special stickers in the Messages app. Prior to this, the Cupertino-based company had launched a similar, Thanksgiving-themed achievement. That challenge required users to run or walk 5km, or 3.1 miles. Via

Nearly a week after pushing out the last one, Samsung has started rolling out a new Nougat beta update to Galaxy S7 and S7 edge units that are participating in the company's Galaxy beta program. The update is currently only available in the UK and South Korea. It's not a major update, meaning no new features aren't included. But there are some noticeable changes that it brings along, including fix for the intermittent rebooting issue as well as transparency for notifications on the lockscreen. Via

Early on in November, a report circulated the internet claiming that Apple was going to release a ‘Jet White’ color option (mid-cycle) for the iPhone to follow the wild success of the Jet Black iPhone 7 option. That report was met with skepticism, as Apple is not the one to normally release new color options in the middle of its product cycle, a decision better left for the launch of Apple’s next iPhone in 2017. In any case, if you wanted to see what a glossy-white iPhone would look like, you can just take a look at the following video clip. Upon first glance, you’ll notice that the white shells being shown are not really from Apple with their missing, they could perhaps be either Chinese-made replacemnt shells sold on sites like Alibaba or they were painted white. There’s no way these paint jobs would ever leave the Foxconn factory. As it stands, the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus is available in five colors: Silver, Black, Gold, Rose Gold, and Jet Black. Maybe adding a “P

If you’ve around around the XDA-Developers forums before, you’ve probably seen the name of this popular aftermarket ROM. CyanogenMod ROMs have been around since it first debuted on the HTC Dream, also known as the T-Mobile G1, the first smartphone to come with Android 1.5, Cupcake. Sometimes (a few years ago more-so than today) the way OEMs designed firmware for smartphones wasn’t good enough, this is where CyanogenMod came in, and it offered an alternative OS for tinkerers who were brave enough to flash custom-made software (unsupported by the OEM) to their smartphones. Phones that were otherwise bogged down by their own skins like the HTC Hero on Sprint (also known as the laggiest phone ever), had the opportunity for a fresh breath of air free of carrier bloatware, pre-installed nonsense, and running near-stock Android. CyanogenMod also offered an extensive array of settings, options, toggles, and extensive menus to customize every aspect of your ‘daily driv

If you’ve got a shiny new phone this holiday season, the chance that it was an iPhone is double the that of it carrying Samsung's branding. Flurry Analytics, an insight company for Yahoo! has found that 44% of activated devices between December 18 and 25 were iPhones (down 5% from the same report in 2015 ). Meanwhile, just 21% of devices activated were made by Samsung (up 2% from last year’s report) and Huawei devices made it to the third slot with just 3% (Huawei did not even show up in last year’s report, way to go Huawei!). Apple does have an advantage during the Holiday season as many iPhone owners have probably waited until the holidays to make the upgrade. Otherwise, Samsung’s Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge are already well into their product cycle, even so, it earned the number 2 spot of smartphones activated during the holidays. Likewise, the number includes both smartphones and tablets activated during the period, so keep that in mind. The same report

The final version of Android 7.1.1 Nougat started going out to supported Nexus devices in the first part of this month. Well, to all of the still supported Nexuses except one - the Motorola Nexus 6. This was hardly surprising for owners of the 6-inch behemoth, since it was late to the Android 7.0 party too, receiving the update a few weeks after the other devices. And history is now repeating itself. If you own a Nexus 6, you may even have considered the lack of any official word from Google on the Android 7.1.1 update situation as an indication of the fact that the company has quietly dropped support for the phone released in 2014. Thankfully that's not the case. It turns out that a bug was the culprit for the update's delay, and it's still on its way to the Nexus 6. The oldest supported Nexus device is due to receive its taste of Android 7.1.1 Nougat in early January. Here's the full statement sent by Google to Android Police : Unfortunately, we

Samsung may only be be in the planning stages for its Note7-disabling update in South Korea, but over in the US things are in full swing. The company announced earlier this month that such an update would be sent out to all remaining Note7 units in the US starting on December 19. And now it's time for the first of the Big Four carriers to push the software to devices it's sold. That carrier is T-Mobile, which is starting the rollout today. The update will prevent the handset for charging, and will display a notification with information about Samsung's Galaxy Note7 recall and the steps needed to return the device. The build number for the update is N930TUVU2APL2. Obviously, Samsung is hoping that this will convince even the last holdouts to take their Note7s back. If you bought yours from T-Mobile, you can return it without paying any restocking fee, and you'll get a $25 bill credit for doing so, with an additional $75 bill credit if you're swi

LG has unveiled a stunning new speaker system, the PJ9 Levitating Portable Speaker, with a floating speaker design. The PJ9 consists of two parts, a portable wireless speaker and the powered Levitation Station. Using electromagnets, the portable speaker floats on top of the Levitation station. The portable speaker has 360-degree omnidirectional driver while the base Levitation Station has a subwoofer with dual passive radiators. The PJ9 can be paired with two Bluetooth devices simultaneously. The portable speaker can be used with the base station, in which case they both play sound together or can be used on its own separately. The portable speaker is IPX7 certified for outdoor use. When the 10-hour battery gets low, you have to keep the portable speaker on top of the base station. If it's already there, it automatically descends and charges itself without the user having to intervene and without pausing the music. When the wireless charging is complete, the

Mobile World Congress in February is the place-to-be for all major players in the mobile industry (except for Apple, that is) and that’s exactly the stage HMD Global will use to try and start the Nokia fightback. Sources report that at least four new devices will be revealed next year along with the already leaked Nokia D1C that we told you about last month. The devices will feature between 5" and 5.7" displays with WQHD or FHD resolutions. Sadly there’s info only regarding D1C and it says that the device will come in two different options - one priced at about $200 with 3 GB RAM and 5.5” display and a cheaper $150 version with 2GB RAM and 5” FullHD display. Such specs clearly aren’t near flagship-worthy, so HMD Global either has another ace up its sleeve or it plans on testing the water with some mid-range offerings before going for the premium tiers. Source | Via

It is still quite easy to get lost in the sea of rumors and speculations, regarding Samsung's next big flagship. Few things are known about the eagerly-anticipated device, which is all but normal, since we are currently expecting the Galaxy S8around April next year. And even that time-frame is a rough approximation, based on rumors. However, amid all the confusion, some official information has already surfaced, most of it regarding the phone's voice assistant. The platform comes off as being quite ambitious, combining strong artificial intelligence with system-wide reach and an API open for third-party development. Now, a fresh new insider source claims that Samsung's AI, currently known as Bixby will be based on Viv Labs' platform. It appears our original hunch was true, back when the Korean giant acquired the company a few months ago. Going by Viv Labs' co-founder description of the platform, we can expect something conceptually similar to Si

Another day, another Xiaomi rumor and this time it’s the Redmi Note 4X. Several days ago the Chinese company launched two new colors of the Redmi 4 in China but it looks like they are now moving on to the next Note-series phone. According to a report Xiaomi are expected to launch Redmi Note 4X which will be more powerful than the current Redmi Note 4. The device will feature 4 GB of RAM and 64 GB storage with Snapdragon 653. Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 The current Note 4 device has 2GB of RAM (3GB for the High edition) and runs on Helio X20 processor. The Note line is very popular in China so if the leak about Redmi Note 4X is true we’ll see an even more powerful device to steal hearts with it’s affordable price and impressive performance. Source

New ASUS Chromebook made a premature appearance on online retailer Newegg's website. The device was named C302CA and the specs listed included 4GB of RAM, Intel Core m3 processor (4M Cache, up to 2.2 GHz), 64GB internal storage with microSD slot and 12,5" FullHD touchscreen. After several hours the listing for the unannounced device was taken down. The guys over at Chromeunboxed.com are reporting that they already purchased one for $499 and we are eager to see what will happen to their order. ASUS C302CA The immediate overturn of the listing tells us that ASUS are really planning a new chromebook and the data suggests it will be which is bigger, but thinner than the Flip, the current ASUS flagship Chromebook. Source | Via 1 • Via 2

The popular video converter HandBrake is out of beta after abstaining from marking its software as stable for 13 years. HandBrake helps you convert whatever video format you have to an iOS-compatible one. It also supports presets for Apple TV. The program is free and supports Windows, Mac and Linux. Yay, open-source! The change log for version 1.0 is long but the most important bits include drag & drop support, chapter marker export/import in CSV format, and the automatic queue pausing when available disk space is low. Check out the program following the source link and happy video converting! Source | Via

CES is ever so closer and rumors about possible announcements flock like bees on a newly blossomed flower. After we reported specs and prices about the forthcoming Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017) yesterday, today we have some more info. Our tipster Ackhmed Aizat pointed out that Samsung Mobile Malaysia teased an image saying that “it all begins with A. Hold your breath.” The holding breath part as well as the water in the image clearly suggest that some or all of Samsung’s upcoming devices from the Galaxy A series will be waterproof. A twitter-user Roland Quandt joined the rumor mill and added that the alleged devices will be revealed at CES next month. All we have left is to wait until next week and see what Samsung has prepared for us at CES. Source

Rumors about Apple are always saucy and intriguing. This time the Japanese outlet Macotakara leaked an image of the alleged iPhone 7s or whatever Apple ends up naming the updated version of the latest Apple iPhone 7. The most interesting part of their leak is the placement of the dual camera. The sensors are still on the upper-left corner but are placed vertically rather than the horizontally as in the iPhone 7 Plus. Sources also report that the flagship would sport a 5” display and the Plus version would be with 5.8-inch display.     iPhone 7 Plus - the only dual-camera smartphone by Apple Specifications are unclear up to this point and all the rumors reveal only external details like all-glass design, wireless charging and OLED display. Of course this isn’t the first time we’ve heard any of these suggestions. Next year Apple is celebrating 10 years since the first iPhone launch so we are expecting a leap forward rather than another small step. Sou

Last week, Samsung decided to give more time to Galaxy Note7 in South Korea and elected not to entirely kill the remaining 140,000 units in the wild. In a new development today, however, the tech giant seems to have changed its mind and will allegedly be killing said units after all. To quote the official spokesperson: Samsung is considering to push the software update to the Note 7 in Korea that can limit the battery charge of the device as the exchange rate has exceeded 90 percent here Now, the statement does mention "limit", however, since Korean units did already receive the initial preemptive update, capping the charge to 60%, the most likely escalation would naturally be killing the devices - a process already underway in many other markets. The OTA will likely hit SK Telecom units first, with other carrier, like KT and LG Uplus expected to follow soon. To accommodate the new measures to some extent, Samsung has also extended its exchange or r

Just a day after we reported the LG G6 will be officially announced after two months we have some more info for you. An Israeli source leaked renders of the alleged LG G6 flagship. The first thing we see is it will probably look a lot like LG G5 which is not really a flattery. Back in the early months of 2016 we called the smartphone “the least exciting design of the season” and we still stand by our words. LG G6 leaked renders But let’s review what the render shows us. The height will still be the same, but the width is 72.4mm which suggests slightly slimmer bezels. Volume buttons are still placed on the left side and a dual-camera module is visible on the back. We do not have info whether the battery will be removable like the LG V20. LG G5 The display will probably be 5.3 inches with 1440x2560 pixel resolution and underneath it there’ll be 6 GB of RAM. For more unofficial preliminary specifications check out the smartphone at our Rumor Mill. Source

A new Gionee smartphone has been certified by the Chinese telecommunication authority TENAA. The Gionee F106, the TENAA listing reveals, is powered by an SoC with quad-core 1.5GHz processor, and sports a 4.99-inch HD display. RAM is 2GB, while internal memory is 16GB, and is further expandable via a microSD card slot. The device features an 8MP rear camera and a 5MP front unit. Measuring 144×70.8×8.4mm and weighing in at 150.2g, the phone runs Android 6.0 Marshmallow, and packs in a 2,660mAh battery. Color options include gold and silver. Pricing and availability information is't currently known. Source | Via

Not only smartphones, Microsoft has given a price cut to HTC's Steam-powered Vive VR headset as well. The device, which usually carries a price tag of $799, is currently listed on Microsoft's online US store for $699. In addition to the price cut, the company is offering a $100 Microsoft Store gift code for free with the headset. And there's even more. A couple of games - The Gallery – Episode 1: Call of the Starseed and Zombie Training Simulator - are included for free as well. "Get 3 free games ($100 value) when you buy a GeForce GTX graphics card, desktop, or laptop with the HTC VIVE," the listing further reveals. A quick look at HTC's own website reveals that the $100 discount is available there as well. For more information, head to the Source links below. Source 1 2

Launched back in October this year, the Huawei Nova is already available in three color options: Prestige Gold, Mystic Silver, Titanium Grey. Now, a fourth color has been added to that list: Obsidian Black. Yes, after the Huawei Mate 9, the Nova is now also available in Obsidian Black color. The new model is currently only on sale in China, and pricing should be same as other color variants. As of now, there's no information on if and when it will arrive outside of the Asian country. Via

Back in October this year, B&H Photo was selling the Microsoft Lumia 550 for $60. A quick look at the retailer's website now reveals that the device is no longer available there. In case you missed the deal, you'll be glad to know that now Microsoft has given the device a price cut. No, the price hasn't dropped to $60 this time, but at $69, it's not a bad deal either. Sadly - just like the Acer Liquid M330 - the Lumia 550 is also currently out of stock, so you'll have to keep an eye out to track when it's back in stock. Available in both the US and Canada, the promo ends January 3. For more details, head to the Source link below. Source

The yet-to-be-announced BlackBerry Mercury smartphone will be available from Verizon in the United States. This was revealed by well known tipster Roland Quandt in a tweet late last week. There was, however, no word on the device's pricing and launch time frame. So far, it was being said that the Mercury - which features a physical QWERTY keyboard, a la original BlackBerry phones - will be the last device to be released by the Canadian company, but Quandt revealed that it is in fact being built by TCL - design is from BlackBerry though. Specs-wise, the phone is said to be powered by a Snapdragon 821 chipset and sport a curved display with a screen size of around 4.5-inch. It is also rumored to pack in a large battery, enough to get the handset through two days of use. Source