Xiaomi 12S Ultra has a Leica camera with a massive 1-inch sensor
Merely six months after its previous flagship launch, today Xiaomi announced a trio of familiar-looking smartphones to mark the beginning of its partnership with Leica. The new 12S Series features MIUI 13 based on Android 12, and it runs on Qualcomm’s allegedly more efficient Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 flagship processor, with the headlining 12S Ultra packing a massive 1-inch, 50.3-megapixel Sony IMX989 main sensor. This translates to a generous pixel size of 1.6um, which then doubles to 3.2um via pixel binning for a supposedly boosted color accuracy and low light performance. And unlike the Sony Xperia Pro-I, the Xiaomi 12S Ultra apparently uses the entire portion of its 1-inch sensor.
According to CEO Lei Jun, Xiaomi took part in the Sony IMX989’s development, and the $15 million cost was also split evenly between the two companies. Interestingly, the sensor won’t be exclusive to Xiaomi; Lei added that it’ll be made available to his local competitors after the launch of the 12S Ultra, in order to “promote the advancement of mobile imaging together.”
From Engadget
Apple Watch Series 8 Model Rumored to Feature 5% Larger Display
Apple is working on an Apple Watch Series 8 model with a larger display, according to DSCC’s Ross Young and Haitong International Securities’s Jeff Pu.
In October last year, Young suggested that the Apple Watch Series 8 could come in three display sizes. Now, responding to a query about the rumor on Twitter, Young claims that the additional display size joining the Apple Watch lineup will be 1.99-inches in size diagonally.
Likewise, in a note to investors seen by MacRumors, analyst Jeff Pu mentioned that Apple supplier Luxshare will be the “sole supplier” for a “high-end” 2-inch Apple Watch model this year. It seems likely that the 1.99-inch display size presented by Young has simply been rounded up by Pu.
A 1.99-inch Apple Watch display size compares to 1.691-inches on the 41mm Apple Watch Series 7 and 1.901-inches on the 45mm Apple Watch Series 7. The new display size would offer an additional 0.089-inches of space diagonally over the 45mm Apple Watch Series 7, which is almost a five percent increase.
It is also of note that Young and Pu’s claims could also line up with rumors about this year’s “rugged” Apple Watch model, which is expected to join the Apple Watch lineup alongside the other Series 8 models. Flagship Apple Watches have historically only ever been offered in two size options, so a third, larger display size could correlate with a new, additional Apple Watch “Explorer Edition” variant, especially if this is also the model to offer a new design with flat edges.
From Macrumors
Huawei nova 10 series debuts alongside Huawei Tag
Huawei unveiled two new members of its nova series with the nova 10 and nova 10 Pro smartphones. The pair share similar specs including 120Hz OLED screens, Snapdragon 778G 4G chipsets and 60MP selfie cameras. Alongside them Huawei announced its own NFC tracker dubbed Huawei Tag.
From Gsmarena
vivo Y77 5G unveiled: Dimensity 810 and a bigger 5,000mAh battery
The vivo Y77 5G is slightly thicker and heavier at 8.25mm and 194g vs. 7.8mm and 175g. This is due to the larger battery, 5,000mAh (up from 4,100mAh). However, the 44W fast charging is apparently going away, to be replaced by a basic 18W system.
The camera setup is a mix of the Y76 and Y76s. This includes a 50MP main camera (f/1.8), which is joined only by a 2MP macro cam. On the front there is a 16MP selfie cam, which supports face unlocking. Alternatively, users can use the side-mounted fingerprint reader.
The display is the same, a 6.58” LCD with 1,080 x 2,408px resolution (20:9) and standard 60Hz refresh rate.
The vivo Y77 5G will launch on July 7 (Thursday). The price hasn’t been officially confirmed yet, but is rumored to be CNY 1,300 in China ($195/€185/₹15,000). There are two colorways to choose from: Glowing Galaxy and Starlight Black.
From Gsmarena
nubia Red Magic 7S series will arrive on July 11
For the past three generations of flagships, the ZTE brand nubia has been introducing its top-tier smartphones at the beginning of the year, followed by a mild upgrade with a newer chipset several months later.
This is happening once again, as the Red Magic 7 series are getting ever so slightly more powerful siblings in the face of Red Magic 7S and Red Magic 7S Pro. The two new phones are now certified on TENAA, and nubia decided the secret is not worth hiding anymore, so it revealed the Pro variant and the date it will be launched – July 11.
From Gsmarena
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 gets a ton of bug fixes with One UI Watch 4.5 Beta 3
Samsung finally lifted the One UI beta program’s restriction to smartphones last month when it announced that Galaxy Watch 4 owners could hop in the tests. After two beta releases, the company began July with another One UI Watch beta build.
The third One UI Watch 4.5 beta includes plenty of bug fixes and improvements to the system’s core functionality (via XDA Developers). One of the highlight fixes addresses a system crash that occurred when you tap the Home button while scrolling.
It also fixes a Bixby music playback issue and the inability to restore after Tile backups. The update also solves a Bluetooth connection problem when running the Gallery app, as well as a previous power consumption issue caused by the Galaxy Buds’ auto switch communication.
In addition to the bug fixes, One UI Watch 4.5 beta 3 includes a host of quality-of-life improvements. One of them makes the touch sensitivity more stable. The watch face GUI has also been improved, as has the wearing detection.
From Android Central
iPhone 14 release date news: Here are the latest details
The iPhone 14 lineup is expected to bring upgrades to the camera, a redesign for the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max, and more. For example, the Pro models are slated to feature hole punch + pill-shaped cutout. The front-facing camera is expected to get updated, a new purple color could be offered, and there are rumors of an always-on display.
This year, all indications are that the iPhone 14 is on track for an announcement and a release in September. This includes the iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Max, iPhone 14 Pro, and iPhone 14 Pro Max. That’s the entire lineup of new iPhone models we expect this year.
If history is any indication, Apple generally holds its annual Special Event to announce new iPhone models on the first or second Tuesday of September. This year, that would be September 6 or September 13. Given that Labor Day is September 5 in the United States, the most likely date for a keynote this year is September 13.
With all of that having been said, we still can’t entirely rule out the possibility of delays. As we’ve discussed many times, there are a multitude of issues affecting the supply chain right now, ranging from shortages to shutdowns caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
From 9to5Mac
AirPods Pro 2 likely won’t get a much-hyped health feature – and it won’t matter
Bloomberg reporter, and frequent Apple news source, Mark Gurman has given his two cents’ worth on one of the key features expected to debut in Apple’s hotly-anticipated AirPods Pro 2 – and it’s not good news.
What’s up? Well, fitness fans had long been hoping for the introduction of temperature-sensing (something which Honor initially reported would arrive for the first time ever in its Earbuds 3 Pro, but never managed to deliver) and even heart-rate monitoring to the new AirPods. But in his most recent Power On Newsletter, Gurman writes:
“This years’ AirPods Pro are unlikely to get heart-rate monitoring… Over the past few months, there have been rumors about this year’s model gaining the ability to determine a wearer’s heart rate or body temperature. I’m told that neither feature is likely to arrive in the 2022 upgrade, though both enhancements have been explored inside the company and could arrive one day.”
Gurman also notes that if you bought Apple’s inaugural flagship noise-cancelling AirPods Pro true wireless earbuds anywhere near their launch date in October 2019, the likelihood is that you’ll be after a younger model soon – because the batteries inside even the best true wireless earbuds do not last forever.
The new, upgraded set of in-ear AirPods were arguably first rumored to get the feature in a report from 52Audio.com claiming that the AirPods Pro 2 will include temperature and heart-rate sensors, as well as speakers in the charging case (the latter to help the hearing-impaired).
From Techradar
WhatsApp is bringing you more time to delete messages for everyone
A new WhatsApp feature is coming and it will give you more time to delete those embarrassing messages. As spotted by WABetaInfo, WhatsApp has upgraded the Delete For Everyone feature and its time limit has been extended by a huge margin.
The Delete For Everyone feature, which was introduced in 2017, was fairly strict in terms of the time limit. It was then upgraded and users could now delete the messages sent within 1 hour, 8 minutes, and 16 seconds. With an imminent update, WhatsApp will soon expand the time limit to a whopping 2 days and 12 hours.
From Sammobile
Tesla EVs can now scan the road for potholes and adjust the suspension height
Tesla has introduced a software update that allows its vehicles to scan for potholes, broken pavement and other defects, Electrek has reported. It can then use that to generate “rough road map data,” and trigger the adaptive suspension in supported vehicles to adjust the ride height for more comfort.
Back in 2020, Musk tweeted that such a feature was coming, and this appears to be the first step. “This adjustment may occur at various locations, subject to availability, as the vehicle downloads rough road map data generated by Tesla cars,” the release notes state. That means pothole and other data should become increasingly refined as Tesla vehicles ply the roads.
The ride adjustment will only work in Tesla Model S and Model X cars with adaptive suspensions, Elektrek notes. It’s not clear if the Model 3 or Y vehicles also scan for rough roads, even if they lack the adaptive suspension to benefit from the data. Both the Model 3 and the Model S have eight cameras in total.
To enable the feature you’ll need the latest update 2022.20, then you tap “Controls > Suspension > Adaptive Suspension Damping, and select the Comfort or Auto setting,” Tesla notes, adding that “the instrument cluster will continue to indicate when the suspension is raised for comfort.”
Tesla isn’t the first automaker to think up pothole scanning technology. Some manufacturers like Ford have proposed features that even detect individual potholes and instantly damp the suspension, for example. Tesla’s system could be far more practical, though, by simply softening the ride parameters over known patches of rough road.
From Engadget
