LG’s G series is expected to be retired soon in favor of the upcoming ‘Velvet’ lineup, but the company has no plan to abandon the legacy models in terms of software support. 2018’s LG G7 ThinQ, for example, is scheduled to receive the Android 10 update in Q3 2020. While we don’t know the exact date of the OTA rollout, LG has now shared Android 10 kernel sources for a couple of carrier-branded variants of the LG G7.
Back in February 2020, LG kickstarted the public beta testing of Android 10 for the Korean LG G7 variant (model number LMG710N). They also published the Android 10 kernel source for the phone on their open-source code distribution repository but removed it after a while for some unknown reason. This time, the new set of kernel source packages is intended for the Verizon and T-Mobile variants (LMG710VM and LMG710TM/TMP respectively).
Interestingly, LG Korea is planning to deliver the non-beta build of LG UX 9.0 on top of Android 10 for the LG G7 ThinQ in Q2 2020, i.e. quite before the global rollout. The availability of the kernel source, however, doesn’t necessarily indicate an early arrival of the OTA outside their home country. LG might take several months to roll out the stable version of Android 10 for the LG G7 ThinQ, just like they did with the Android Pie update.
The updated kernel source codes are actually beneficial for the aftermarket developers, who can use them to fix the bugs in existing custom ROMs and kernels. LG officially allows only the European variant of the LG G7 (model number LMG710EM) to be bootloader unlocked, but it is now possible to unlock other variants (except the T-Mobile variant) using a community-developed method. An unofficial build of LineageOS 17.1 is for this phone is also available on our forums as a viable alternative for users who want to migrate away from LG’s skin.
Last month, Nokia announced the Nokia 8.3,Nokia 5.3 and Nokia 1.3 smartphones. While everyone may be interested in the higher-end 5G device, the humble Nokia 1.3 also demanded some attention thanks to one key detail. The Nokia 1.3 with its Snapdragon 250 SoC runs Android 10 Go Edition, with upgrades planned to Android 11 Go Edition and Android 12 Go Edition too. The most exciting part about this admittedly low-end, €95 device is that it is the first phone to feature Google Camera Go.
If you aren’t familiar with Google Camera, it is one of the best camera applications available for premium smartphones and is one of the reasons why the Google Pixels are considered the arguable best smartphones for still photography despite not marketing any huge MP-count cameras or elaborate multi-camera setups. The app and the software magic underneath is testimony to the fact that a great camera experience isn’t just about the hardware — instead, it is a result of the harmony between software and hardware. Google Camera officially remains a Pixel-exclusive, though you can use unofficial community ports (lovingly referred to as GCam) on different devices with varying results.
Google Camera Go is a stripped-down version of the Pixel’s Google Camera app and is intended to be used on Android Go devices. Thanks to this app, low-end devices like the Nokia 1.3 with its singular 8MP rear camera can take advantage of Google’s photography algorithms and also click beautiful portrait mode photos, applying depth-of-field effects using only software. The app is deeply integrated into the OS and it doesn’t just exist as a photo filter on top, so the results are expected to be better. Because it is meant to be used on Android Go devices that typically come with very humble specifications, the app also suggests ways to clear up space when storage is low.
We extracted the APK from the Nokia 1.3 firmware and installed it on the Google Pixel 4 and OnePlus 7 Pro, to give you a hands-on of how the app looks and functions, and how it can seemingly democratize a good camera experience.
Google Camera Go: Hands-on
The UI within the app is very basic, which is to be expected. The landing page of the app has very little clutter to distract the user. You can spot the prominent shutter button at the bottom, flanked by the camera switcher and gallery shortcut. Underneath, you can find the mode switcher. The magnifying glass icon is a slider for digital zoom. Tapping anywhere on the screen lets you lock focus and contrast on that spot, though you can vary the exposure level through the slider that appears on the side. On the top, you get icons for Settings, storage cleaner and a shortcut for Flash settings. Within settings, options are once again very basic as you are limited to changing the Flash, Timer and beauty enhancements. The Storage Cleaner gives you an estimate on the number of images you can click. It will also seemingly guide you with steps you can take to reclaim space when you are running out. The Flash setting is a duplicate/repeated shortcut, but that’s alright. There are no buttons for lens-switching, which is intended by design as this app is meant for low-end devices that usually stick to just one rear camera.
The front camera UI is similarly barebones. Here, the Flash setting shortcut is replaced with one for Beauty mode/face smoothening.
Switching over to the different modes, the current highlight of this app is the Portrait mode. This mode aims to bring focus to a face and blur the background around it. It works on both the front and back cameras. You don’t get a live preview of the depth effect. The depth effect is applied through software since the app is intended to be used on single-camera devices.
The other two modes present on the app are Video mode and Translate mode. Video mode does not present any settings to the user other than the Flash shortcut. There’s an estimate on the number of minutes you can shoot before you run out of storage, which should come in handy on Android Go devices. There’s a Translate mode present too, but we could not get it to work on this build of the app. We presume that it will work in a similar fashion as Google Translate’s Live Translate feature does, though the challenge here is to do it on a resource-constrained device.
Camera Go: Image Samples
We took some photos with the new Camera Go app. Due to COVID-19 advisories, we are limited in the camera testing that we can do. Yes, we are trying this out on much more expensive, premium smartphones. We plan to try this on Android Go devices as well, soon.
Day shots
These day shots are taken with the OnePlus 7 Pro. We took photos with the Go app, as well as with a GCam 7.3 port by Arnova8G2 (v07/04), as well as the stock OnePlus Camera. HDR+ Enhanced was enabled on GCam, and HDR was forced on OnePlus Camera. The Go app does not have an HDR setting, but as you’ll see below, the results are decent regardless.
Night shots
These shots are taken with Google Pixel 4 using the Go app as well as the stock Google Camera app.
The results are obviously better with the stock Google Camera app, but the Go app also does perform well. Keep in mind that this app is intended for Go Edition devices, which typically retail for $100 and below. Once you factor in the price, the difference becomes all the more impressive.
What are your thoughts on Camera Go? Do you wish to see this app made available for all Android devices? Let us know in the comments below!
During Samsung’s Unpacked event last year, the company announced the “Link to Windows” feature for the Galaxy Note 10. The feature works in conjunction with the Microsoft Your Phone app and allows users to quickly connect their Galaxy Note 10 to a Windows PC. Towards the end of last year, Microsoft rolled out a new Windows 10 Insider Build with Link to Windows support for the Galaxy S10 series and the Galaxy Fold. Now, according to a recent report from Sammobile, the company is rolling out an update for the Link to Windows feature that will allow users to drag and drop files between their Samsung device and a Windows 10 PC.
As with the previous Link to Windows features, the new drag and drop file transfer feature works via the Your Phone app and allows users to transfer any file type across the linked devices. While there’s no limitation of file type, Microsoft has revealed that users won’t be able to transfer more than 100 files at a time and each file’s maximum size has been limited to 512GB. Other than these two limitations, the feature will work on all Galaxy devices running Link to Windows v1.5 (or higher) and Windows 10 PCs running the latest Insider build of the platform. The feature doesn’t require a wired connection, however, both the connected devices will have to be on the same wireless network in order to connect.
To use the new feature, you’ll first need to connect your supported Galaxy device to a Windows 10 PC and head to the phone screen on the Your Phone app on the PC. Once there, you can open the Gallery or My Files app, long press on a file till a checkmark appears on it, select additional files if you want, and then long press again to enable the drag and drop functionality. You can then drag the files and drop them to any location on your PC. Do note that minimizing the Your Phone window while files are being transferred cancels the operation, so you’ll have to wait for the process to complete before you can minimize the window.
To transfer files from your PC to your Galaxy device, you’ll need to select the files you wish to transfer and drag them over to the Your Phone app window. Once the cursor changes to notify ‘Copy’, you can drop the files and they’ll be transferred to your phone. Files transferred from your PC to your phone are stored inside the Downloads folder within the phone’s internal storage. In case you face any issues while using the new feature, you can head over to Microsoft’s official announcement post from the source link below and follow the troubleshooting methods listed there.
iQOO, formerly a Vivo sub-brand, recently made its international debut with the launch of the iQOO 3 5G in India. Kishan from our team concluded his iQOO 3 5G review commending it as one of the fastest phones out there, thanks to the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 mobile platform, 12GB of RAM, and UFS 3.1 storage technology. Additional features like the pressure-sensitive “Monster” shoulder buttons make the package even more exciting. One area, however, where the phone was found to be lagging behind the competition is the refresh rate of the display. For users who want a display with a higher refresh along with the other gaming-centric features in the iQOO 3, the company will be launching the iQOO Neo 3 on April 23rd with a 144Hz display.
The iQOO Neo 3 is actually the fourth phone in the Neo series and the previous devices were named simply after the processor powering them. The older iQOO phones in the series were called Neo 845, Neo 855, and Neo 855 Plus. The new naming scheme indicates that iQOO is positioning the Neo 3 alongside the iQOO 3 instead of it being a successor or a supplementary device.
Ahead of the iQOO Neo 3’s launch on the 23rd of April, the brand’s Weibo account has started actively teasing the key features of the phone. Expectedly, the Neo 3 is powered by a Snapdragon 865 and comes with a UFS 3.1 NAND storage. Besides this, the Neo 3 also comes with a 144Hz display to complement the top-of-the-line internal hardware.
Based on some screenshots found on Weibo, we learn that an upcoming Vivo-branded phone with model number PD1981 will allow users to choose among the different screen refresh rates. The screenshots are allegedly captured on the iQOO Neo 3 since there is no other Vivo flagship (iQOO still sells under Vivo in China) appears to be in pipeline. The available options include a 60Hz option for better battery performance, a 90Hz option for optimal performance and battery backup, and a 120Hz option to unleash a super-smooth display. Additionally, the screenshots also reveals the phone runs on Vivo’s overlay skin Funtouch OS based on Android 10.
Vivo has also launched a microsite for iQOO Neo 3 and we can expect to see more updates on the same in the coming days. We’ll update you as we learn more about the phone.
Early last month, OnePlus rolled out version 4.3.3 of the OnePlus Launcher featuring two new features — support for hiding icon labels and an AMOLED black theme for OnePlus Shelf. Now, the company is rolling out version 4.4.2 of the launcher which brings tweaks to the recent apps screen. As you can see in the screenshots below, the latest version of the OnePlus Launcher moves the app icon from the top of the preview card in the recent apps screen to the bottom, giving users access to a new icon carousel that can be used to quickly switch between recent apps.
Since the app icon has now been moved to the bottom of the preview card, the app name has been centered above the preview card for a cleaner, more symmetrical look. Along with the aforementioned changes, the OnePlus Launcher update also removes the three-dot context menu button from the recent apps menu. Since the menu button has been removed, users will now have to long-press on the app card to access the contextual menu options. As this change in functionality isn’t quite evident, the launcher will display a prompt following the update which states, “Long press the app card to access the menu options.”
For these new changes to take effect, you’ll need to update the OnePlus Launcher to version 4.4.2. However, the update isn’t available on the Play Store yet. In case you don’t wish to wait for the Play Store release, you can download the latest APK from APK Mirror by following the link below.
Over the last couple of months, Google has released a couple of design changes for the YouTube app on Android. These include a test to show channel previews in the comments section, a new “Explore” tab to help users find new videos, and new filters in the subscription feed. Now, the company is testing another UI update which will make it easier for users to check the comments under any video.
In the current version of the YouTube app on Android, the comments section can be found after the recommended section beneath each video. If you’re someone who frequents the comments section on the platform, then you’d know that scrolling through all the recommended videos could be a bit annoying. To address this issue, YouTube is now testing a new UI that will move the comments section right underneath the video.
The new UI is available for a handful of users in version 15.14.33 of the YouTube app on Android. Our Editor-in-Chief, Mishaal Rahman, has received the minor design update on his device and, as you can see in the attached screenshots, you no longer have to scroll through recommended videos in order to get to the comments section. Instead, the comments now appear within a small window right underneath the video. Tapping on the window expands the comments section and allows you to view all the comments on any given video.
Why the hell are comments on the YouTube app put in this small window instead of the bottom of recommended videos like normal that is such a dumb layout change pic.twitter.com/6k7pcMLdbx
A number of users on Twitter have also reported receiving the new UI on their devices, however, it wasn’t available on any of my devices at the time of writing this piece. This suggests that YouTube is currently testing the new UI with a handful of users and should roll it out to more users after ironing out any issues that might plague the update. Irrespective of its current availability, this change to the placement of the comments section is expected to encourage more users to leave comments and increase user engagement on the YouTube app.
Update 1 (4/12/2020 @ 1:56 PM EST): A new certification filing has confirmed that this smartphone will be called the Xiaomi Mi Note 10 Lite.
Back in November, Xiaomi surprised everyone by bringing back the Mi Note lineup, which had not seen a new entry since the Xiaomi Mi Note 3 in 2017. These new devices were the Mi Note 10 and its Pro variant. Both pack a Snapdragon 730G processor, and the other specs are expectedly mid-range for an Android smartphone until you go to the camera side: it was the first phone to release with a 108MP sensor, and the rest of the penta-camera array was also pretty impressive. Max Weinbach went hands-on with it, and he found it to provide pretty great camera versatility. Now, it seems that a cheaper version of this phone may come to the market very soon.
The Mi Note 10 Dual SIM, 6GB RAM/128GB storage model has the model name “M1910F4G.” And recently, Xiaomi submitted a new document to the FCC to update the phone’s certification. This new document is titled “Product Equality Declaration-F4L&F4” and it lists the difference between M1910F4G (the Mi Note 10) and a phone with the model number M2002F4LG (which could possibly be this purported “Lite” model).
The document reveals the following differences between the Mi Note 10 and the new M2002F4LG:
Screen: same (6.47″ FHD+ curved OLED, 19:9, waterdrop notch)
The main takeaways from this list is that the 108MP sensor is being swapped for a more conventional 64MP sensor. The full penta-camera array of the standard model is 108MP + 20MP + 12MP + 8MP + 2MP. The Note 10 Lite might be able to provide similar versatility than the standard Mi Note 10 provides, with the sole difference of having lower-res sensors— which is still pretty good as the only phones to use 108MP sensors so far besides the Mi Note 10 are the Mi MIX Alpha, the Mi 10 lineup and the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra. We also don’t have laser auto-focus.
Other than these, the phone seems to be identical: Snapdragon 730G processor, 30W charging, and the same display. Unlike the standard model, this one would come with Android 10 out of the box, and the software would come with support for LTE band 41. The camera difference alone may bring down the price quite considerably, given how the phone was fairly expensive precisely because of the 108MP camera. We don’t know yet when this device will launch or if it will launch, but it is definitely worth a look once it is out.
Featured image: Mi Note 10
Update 1: Mi Note 10 Lite Name Confirmed
A new certification filing with Thailand’s NBTC, the country’s equivalent to the U.S. FCC, has confirmed that the smartphone with model name M2002F4LG will be called the “Mi Note 10 Lite.”
