TL;DR
Images supposedly showing the Huawei P Smart 2019 have been published online. The pictures show a phone with a waterdrop notch, rear fingerprint scanner, and dual camera setup. It’s believed the new handset will offer a Kirin 710 chipset, up to 4GB of RAM, and up to 64GB of storage. The Huawei P Smart was one of the better-equipped budget phones in the first half of 2018. Featuring a dual camera setup, rear fingerprint scanner and a full HD+ 18:9 display, it ticked plenty of boxes for a sub-$300 device.
Lenovo introduced a new Chromebook during MWC Barcelona 2019 built for the enterprise. Released alongside the 14w with Windows 10, both are intended to “increase firstline worker productivity” in retail, manufacturing and more. Both arrive in April with the Chromebook costing around $279 and the Windows 10 device costing around $299.
Lenovo 14e: An enterprise-friendly Chromebook For this hands-on, we dug into Lenovo’s enterprise-friendly 14e Chromebook. The model on display featured a durable aluminum exterior complementing a 14-inch IPS screen with a 1,920 x 1,080 resolution.
If you’re anything like me, at any given time you probably have close to a dozen or more accounts online (email, memberships to services, bank accounts, etc), all of which require a password. That means you have at least a few different passwords to memorize, as using the same password for everything isn’t exactly the most secure route to take. While a completely password-free life isn’t quite attainable just yet, Google is testing out a method that can free us from one of these passwords at least.
We’re quickly approaching the release of the latest and greatest device from OnePlus, the OnePlus 5T. While nothing is confirmed yet, plenty of rumors are popping up about the internals, display, and camera of the device. It looks like company co-founder Carl Pei is trying to build some hype around the rumored dual-camera setup on the 5T. He has been active on Twitter recently where he shared a photo that probably came from the new phone.
Update, February 11, 2020 (11:30 AM ET): A recent announcement by Google revealed the company is taking active measures to stop users from utilizing any hacks to get RCS messaging on their devices in unsupported regions. Users should expect to see this change by the end of the month. This appears to be a server-side update so no version of the Google Messages app should be immune to the patch.
Realme 2
The Realme 2 is still good value for money, but it's a real head-scratcher that the company chose to take two steps forward and two steps backward with this one.
It’s only been about three months since the Realme 1, and yet here we are with the Realme 2 — an iterative update to an incredibly affordable device, bringing some additional features without inflating the price much. However, for every step forward, the phone takes another step back.
TL;DR
The Italian Authority for Market and Competition just issued a $5.7 million fine to Samsung. The fine is tied to the “Samsung slow down” — the drop in performance smartphones sometimes show after receiving new updates. Apple’s “Batterygate” was similar in practice. In fact, the Italian watchdog group also fined Apple $11.5 million. A watchdog group called the Italian Authority for Market and Competition just issued South Korean electronics giant Samsung a fine for 5 million euros (~$5.
Eric Zeman / Android Authority
TL;DR
Samsung is rumored to be releasing the Galaxy Tab S8 in early 2022. This could include a new 14.6-inch model. Does Samsung risk losing ground in the tablet market if this happens? You might not want to count on buying a new Galaxy Tab S this year. According to SamMobile, a Korean rumor purveyor has claimed the Galaxy Tab S8 might not be released until early 2022 — later than some might expect given early buzz for the Android tablet.
Every now and then I talk about smartphone stuff with my girlfriend. She is half-listening most of the time as the subject only marginally interests her, but she perked right up the other day when I mentioned the launch of the Sony Xperia 1 II. She sat up and said, “There are Sony smartphones?”
I told her yes, there are Sony smartphones available for people to buy. “Actually,” I said, “Sony’s smartphones are really nice.
Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority
TL;DR
The newest Android distribution numbers show an increase in devices with Android 11 or newer installed. Older versions of the operating system have declined. However, Google’s way of showing the numbers makes it difficult to pinpoint what, exactly, is happening. Years ago, Google would publicly post statistics related to how many devices in the world were running specific versions of the Android operating system.