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Thursday, May 3, 2018

Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 update brings Face Unlock and April security patches

For a long time, Xiaomi was the only company in the value-for-money budget price segment in smartphones. The company's Redmi smartphone series has been very popular in India, to the point where Xiaomi is now the largest smartphone vendor in the country, ahead of Samsung. In the budget and lower mid-range price segments, Xiaomi is the undoubted leader, ahead of Honor and Lenovo. However, Xiaomi's dominance in these price segments was challenged last week by Asus with the launch of the Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 in India.

The Asus ZenFone Max Pro is a competitor to the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro (which recently received a price hike for the 4GB RAM variant). Its list of specifications includes the Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 SoC with the Adreno 509 GPU, 3GB/4GB of RAM paired with 32GB/64GB of storage, 6-inch Full HD+ (2160×1080) IPS LCD, dual 13MP + 5MP (depth sensing) rear cameras, 8MP front-facing camera, and a 5000mAh battery. The phone ships with stock Android 8.1 Oreo. It costs Rs. 10,999 ($165) for the 3GB RAM/32GB storage variant, and Rs. 12,999 ($195) for the 4GB RAM/64GB storage variant, under-cutting the Redmi Note 5 Pro in pricing.

The first pre-order sale for the ZenFone Max Pro M1 was held on Thursday. Now, the phone has received its first major update. The update is a major one as it has a download size of 1.3GB. A full changelog has been provided by Asus.

The update for the Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 brings support for Face Unlock. Also, the phone gets improvements with respect to gyroscope functionality, audio, and more. The fingerprint sensor is said to get faster after the update (the speed of the fingerprint sensor has been a point of criticism for the phone). Also, the update brings optimization in the front and rear cameras for color correction, HDR algorithm, low light photos, and more. The "ZenUI" text will now change to "ZenFone" on the system update screen.

The update also brings April 2018 security patches, as well as battery optimization during standby. Asus has stated that it is continuously improving camera performance and features as well as battery life and overall performance, improvements, and optimization. Notably, the ZenFone Max Pro M1 will receive two major Android version updates: Android P and Android Q. This means that it has an advantage in terms of updates over its chief competitor, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro.

Users of the Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 will get the update via an OTA download notification over the next few days. Users can alternatively check for updates manually by going to Settings > System > System updates.

Via: NDTV Gadgets

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An AT&T LG G7 won’t happen, but the LG V35 ThinQ on AT&T might

LG recently took the stage to unveil their latest flagship phone, the LG G7 ThinQ. The successor to the LG G6 is—love it or hate it—joining the ever-growing "notch" trend with a super-bright 19.5:9 display while bumping up internal specifications and adding both a dedicated Google Assistant button and their own mix of "AI-powered" features to the table. LG didn't discuss the pricing or the availability for the G7 ThinQ during the announcement: Instead, they're letting carriers announce their own timelines. And while most US carriers have already confirmed they will be carrying the latest offering from LG, AT&T was a notable exception. That's because AT&T will not be selling the G7 ThinQ to their customers.

An AT&T spokesperson recently told The Verge they had no plans to sell the LG G7 ThinQ. Verizon, T-Mobile, US Cellular, and Sprint have all confirmed they will be stocking and selling the LG G7 ThinQ. Verizon will be taking orders on May 24th, Sprint on May 25th, and US Cellular on June 1st, while T-Mobile has simply confirmed they'll be selling it soon. Instead of the LG G7, AT&T is planning to launch a different, exclusive phone from LG.

They didn't confirm, however, which phone they will offer instead, but according to AndroidHeadlines it'll likely be the LG V35 ThinQ—a new installment in the V series which, unlike the G7, is rumored to not have a notch. Instead, it'll have the same 6″ 18:9 FullVision display found in the V30 and V30S ThinQ. We've covered some aspects of the LG V35 ThinQ some weeks back, and it's quite likely AT&T is going for this instead of the G7.

Leaked images of the purported LG V35 ThinQ (credits: Android Headlines)

However, we won't know for sure until the mysterious device hits AT&T stores: We could be seeing a "plus" variant of the G7. If they're skipping the G7 completely, though, then this is not likely to be the case. It could also be the LG V40 ThinQ that has appeared in rumors. We'll likely learn more soon ahead of the summer launch of the device.

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LG will only use OLED displays for its V series of smartphones

The LG G7 ThinQ was announced on May 2nd with a M+ LCD panel. This fact was surprising to many users, as the LG V30 and the V30S ThinQ both had an OLED display. Now, LG has explained to AndroidHeadlines that the company wants to reserve OLED panels for its "more innovative" V series of smartphones.

According to LG, OLED being more expensive than LCD wasn't a huge factor, as the new M+ LCD technology on the G7 ThinQ is still said to be "pretty pricey." Instead, the reason LG used LCD on the G7 ThinQ was because the G series is more mainstream than the V series. The company wants to include more premium specifications in the V series because of its niche nature.

AndroidHeadlines stated that upcoming LG V series smartphones (which include the rumored V35 ThinQ and the V40) will be in the upper-tier of flagship smartphones, with a price tag that is closer to $1000. On the other hand, the G series is in the first tier of flagship devices, and it would be priced closer to $700 (although the G7 ThinQ costs 849). The G series (including the G7 ThinQ) therefore "needs to be more mainstream," according to LG. The company also stated that it is able to use new LCD technology because it is one of the few device makers having the ability to make the different components it uses in its devices (benefiting from vertical integration).

With the G7, LG aims to show that LCD is not dead, unlike the opinions of some users. According to AndroidHeadlines, LG Display is using the same panels for the G7 from its newest LCD TVs announced at CES in January, which means that it's not an old display.

The G7 ThinQ has a 6-inch Quad HD+ (3120×1440) notched M+ LCD with a 19.5:9 aspect ratio. The display has a "Super Bright" mode that can go up to 1000 nits. This mode can only be enabled for three minutes to prevent overheating. The M+ display uses a RGBW matrix with extra white pixels, which allows the display to attain the 1000 nits figure.

LG has not entirely confirmed whether it will use an OLED panel in the upcoming LG V35 ThinQ and the LG V40, but AndroidHeadlines noted that it's likely that the two phones will in fact feature OLED displays.

Source: AndroidHeadlines

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PSA: Change your Twitter passwords now

If you needed another reminder to frequently update your passwords, Twitter has you covered. Twitter has announced that a bug caused the platform to store passwords unmasked in an internal log. That means passwords were stored unprotected in plain text and could have potentially been stolen. You should change your password just in case.

We recently found a bug that stored passwords unmasked in an internal log. We fixed the bug and have no indication of a breach or misuse by anyone. As a precaution, consider changing your password on all services where you've used this password. https://t.co/RyEDvQOTaZ

— Twitter Support (@TwitterSupport) May 3, 2018

Twitter says they have "no reason to believe password information ever left Twitter's system." That doesn't mean they definitely weren't accessed, just that they haven't detected any foul play. They are advising users to change their passwords as a precautionary measure. Here's their full statement on what happened:

"We mask passwords through a process called hashing using a function known as bcrypt, which replaces the actual password with a random set of numbers and letters that are stored in Twitter's system. This allows our systems to validate your account credentials without revealing your password. This is an industry standard.

Due to a bug, passwords were written to an internal log before completing the hashing process. We found this error ourselves, removed the passwords, and are implementing plans to prevent this bug from happening again."

Change your password and start using two-factor authentication if you're not already. These types of things happen far too often and you don't want your sensitive information out there. Taking 5 minutes to secure your account now could save you a world of pain later on.

Source: Twitter

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LG G7 ThinQ and Samsung Galaxy A6 forums now open

May 2nd was a big day for the Android market as two popular brands launched their latest devices to the public. First up we have the Galaxy A6 and the Galaxy A6+ from Samsung which are continuations of the company's Galaxy A series of devices. While they aren't available for purchase right now, both of these new smartphones are scheduled to be released in select European, Asian, South Korean, African, Chinese, and Latin American markets this year.

LG is the other company who launched a new smartphone on May 2nd with the LG G7 ThinQ being the successor of the G6 flagship from last year. The company has yet to reveal a global release date as of yet, but it will be available in South Korea in a couple of weeks. Release dates for the various markets around the world will vary from carrier to carrier (just like pricing too) though.

As people begin to contemplate whether or not they'll be pre-ordering these new devices, we have created a couple of dedicated forums for them here on XDA. The LG G7 ThinQ has a forum of its own that can be found here while the Galaxy A6 and the Galaxy A6+ will share a forum here.

Galaxy A6 Forums LG G7 ThinQ Forums

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Wear OS adding smart responses, audible answers, and Actions integration to Google Assistant

Since its inception, we've watched as Google has brought their own virtual assistant to hundreds of millions of smartphones, tablets, and even dedicated hardware like Google Home and the smaller Google Home Mini. This is one of those services that get better as more people use it. More data helps Google know what needs to be improved. Google Assistant has been available on Wear OS (formerly Android Wear) for a while, but today we have learned that it has received an update that helps you to get more done when using it on your smartwatch.

The smartwatch market may not be booming like we first saw, but the people who continue to use it are very passionate about the platform. While they did enjoy being able to use Google Assistant on the go without having to pull out their smartphone, there were a number of feature requests being sent to Google. Today's update hopes to address many of those "quality of life" issues by making the user experience more intuitive and enjoyable. For instance, a new feature called smart suggestions will enable you to choose from contextually relevant follow up questions or responses to continue the conversation.

A great example of this in action can be shown when you ask about the weather. After you're given the information you can then tap on a suggestion to find out what the weather will be like tonight, tomorrow, or even this weekend. Smartwatches with a speaker will now be able to use it to tell you the answers to your questions. Google Assistant now has over 1 million Actions and this update finally brings all of them to Wear OS. Once an action is set up, you can use your voice to perform tasks such as preheating your smart oven, starting a new load of clothes, and more.

Source: The Keyword

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Nokia 6.1 arrives in the U.S. with Android One for $269

Nokia and HMD Global have been releasing a ton of decent phones recently. With some hiccups along the way, they're quickly becoming the favorite smartphone OEM of many. With the Android One program seemingly flourishing and continuing to grow, it was only a matter of time before more fan-favorite OEMs would get in on the action. The Android One Nokia 6.1 is here, and what's more, it's coming to the US on May 6th. This is the phone that was officially dubbed the Nokia 6 (2018) in China.

Powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 630 and 4GB of RAM, it also has additional features we've come to expect from Nokia such as enhanced Dual-Sight, ZEISS optics, USB-C fast-charging, and Nokia spatial audio. It also comes with pure, stock Android Oreo, meaning that it should receive updates to new Android versions much faster than some of the competition. The Nokia 6.1 is basically just a small upgrade over the Nokia 6, with a larger screen-to-body ratio at 5.5-inches and a full HD IPS display. It also comes in two colors: Black and Copper.

For those looking to pick it up, you'll be able to buy it officially at Best Buy in the US from $269, starting May 6th, 2018. It's a little pricey when you realize there are other options too, but it's certainly not a bad deal for the price. It also makes sense, given that the SoC has been upgraded from a Snapdragon 430 in the Nokia 6 to the Snapdragon 630 in the Nokia 6.1. It's a pretty big upgrade all things considered. What's more, the Nokia 6.1 will be launching with Project Treble. However, given HMD Global's seeming reluctance to unlock their bootloaders, it seems unlikely that device owners will be able to benefit from that fact in the near future and run AOSP, LineageOS or Resurrection Remix ROMs on their Nokia 6.1. Despite the fact that Google will be a lot more involved with this device given its Android One status than previous Nokia phones, that doesn't necessarily mean that HMD Global will be more open.

Source: PR Newswire

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