OnePlus was co-founded by Pete Lau and Carl Pei back in 2013. Prior to this event, both Pete and Carl worked at OPPO as the Vice President and as the International Markets Manager respectively. As of now, both Pete and Carl hold key positions within OnePlus, as CEO of OnePlus and as Director of OnePlus Global respectively. However, a recent news report suggests that OnePlus CEO Pete Lau has taken on an additional role as Senior Vice President of OPLUS.
According to a report from Android Authority, Pete Lau has taken on additional responsibilities as the Senior VP and Chief Product Experience Officer at OPLUS. This new role involves duties around the brand synergy between the major OPLUS investment properties, namely OPPO, Realme, and OnePlus.
Pete Lau will retain the CEO tag with OnePlus, as per the statement offered by the company in the report:
Pete remains committed to his role as CEO of OnePlus. At the same time, he has also taken on the role of SVP and chief product experience officer for OPLUS, contributing to product and planning development.
If you’re wondering what OPLUS is, the report suggests that this is the investor company that oversees OnePlus, OPPO, and Realme. OPLUS’s mere existence is not really a mystery, as the holding company has different country-specific subsidiaries, such as OPLUS Mobitech India Pvt. Ltd. which counts OnePlus India’s General Manager Vikas Agarwal as its Director. You can look up OPLUS Mobitech on the Government of India’s Ministry of Corporate Affairs website to verify the same.
And now if you’re wondering what happened to BBK Electronics, the parent company that is widely presumed to oversee the three brands (OnePlus, OPPO, Realme) alongside Vivo, iQOO, and others — well that makes two of us that are a little confused. OnePlus has steadfastly denied associations with OPPO in the past, and now, Pete Lau denies that OPLUS is connected to BBK. As the original report notes, the background funding and corporate hierarchy of OnePlus and its sister brands remain shrouded in mystery.
Walmart is insanely popular in the USA, proudly wearing the tag of being one of the biggest supermarket chains in the country. Now, Walmart is looking to take on Amazon Prime with its own subscription program, Walmart+, offering free deliveries and discounted gas to members who subscribe.
Walmart+ goes live for users in the USA on September 15, 2020. According to a report from The Washington Post, Walmart+ is the most direct attempt from the supermarket chain to compete against the popularity of Amazon’s Prime membership program. Walmart+ will reportedly cost $12.95 per month, or $98 if you opt for the annual subscription. In comparison, Amazon Prime costs $12.99 per month or $119 annually.
With Walmart+, members will receive unlimited free deliveries on orders from any of the retailer’s 4,700 stores across the USA, and up to 5 cents of discount per gallon of gasoline at Walmart, Murphy USA, and Murphy Express fuel stations. The membership also enables the “Scan & Go” feature in the company app, allowing customers to scan items as they shop and then check out using Walmart Pay.
Walmart will initially be offering around 160,000 items with free delivery eligibility, ranging across toys, electronics, and groceries. In comparison, Amazon Prime offered more than 10 million items for free one-day delivery, which explains why Prime boasts of 100 million subscribers. Amazon Prime also offers a bunch of other perks under its membership program, including Prime Video, Prime Music, and Prime Gaming. Walmart’s USP, on the other hand, is its wide network of stores, which could help the company scale up timely deliveries despite the COVID-19 disruptions. Walmart also has a better focus on groceries and essentials, two segments that have perennially received attention but have seen an increased influx during the pandemic. If the program does take off, we can expect to see more perks added along the way.
Walmart is insanely popular in the USA, proudly wearing the tag of being one of the biggest supermarket chains in the country. Now, Walmart is looking to take on Amazon Prime with its own subscription program, Walmart+, offering free deliveries and discounted gas to members who subscribe.
Walmart+ goes live for users in the USA on September 15, 2020. According to a report from The Washington Post, Walmart+ is the most direct attempt from the supermarket chain to compete against the popularity of Amazon’s Prime membership program. Walmart+ will reportedly cost $12.95 per month, or $98 if you opt for the annual subscription. In comparison, Amazon Prime costs $12.99 per month or $119 annually.
With Walmart+, members will receive unlimited free deliveries on orders from any of the retailer’s 4,700 stores across the USA, and up to 5 cents of discount per gallon of gasoline at Walmart, Murphy USA, and Murphy Express fuel stations. The membership also enables the “Scan & Go” feature in the company app, allowing customers to scan items as they shop and then check out using Walmart Pay.
Walmart will initially be offering around 160,000 items with free delivery eligibility, ranging across toys, electronics, and groceries. In comparison, Amazon Prime offered more than 10 million items for free one-day delivery, which explains why Prime boasts of 100 million subscribers. Amazon Prime also offers a bunch of other perks under its membership program, including Prime Video, Prime Music, and Prime Gaming. Walmart’s USP, on the other hand, is its wide network of stores, which could help the company scale up timely deliveries despite the COVID-19 disruptions. Walmart also has a better focus on groceries and essentials, two segments that have perennially received attention but have seen an increased influx during the pandemic. If the program does take off, we can expect to see more perks added along the way.
In June, we brought you an exclusive first look at what could be Google’s upcoming Android TV dongle. We shared images that showed off the possible design, the dedicated remote, and the revamped Android TV user interface. However, what we were unable to reveal were the pricing and launch date. Fortunately, a new retail leak for the dongle, code-named “Sabrina,” may have just revealed its pricing in the U.S.
9to5Google is reporting that the “Sabrina” dongle has appeared in Home Depot’s internal system at a price of $49, making it one of the more affordable media streaming devices on the market. In fact, that prices it at exactly the same as the Roku Streaming Stick+ and Amazon Fire TV Stick and right around the Xiaomi Mi TV Stick. Earlier reports suggested the dongle would be “around or below $80,” so today’s report places the price much lower than anticipated.
As we previously reported, the “Sabrina” Android TV dongle will reportedly launch with Android TV on board and come with a dedicated remote (code-named “abbey“) that will offer a programmable button. Meanwhile, the debut of “Sabrina” is expected to concur alongside a revamped Android TV UI that’s more focused on content.
Possible remote
“Sabrina” may also feature integration with Nest doorbells and video cameras, making it easy for users to see alerts right from their TV. Additionally, we previously reported “Sabrina” would usher in a new Google Assistant response UI as well as YouTube TV integration into the “Live” tab.
9to5Google notes that the internal system at Home Depot lists “Sabrina” as coming in three colors: “Rock Candy”, “Como Blue”, and “Summer Melon”.
Update 1 (08/31/2020 @ 12:11 PM ET): Google Maps is now showing traffic lights on Android for many people in the U.S. Scroll to the bottom for more information. The article as published on July 8, 2020, is preserved below.
Google Maps is undoubtedly one of the most popular apps in Google’s portfolio, and the company often releases updates to make the service even better. Since its 15th birthday earlier this year in February, the app has received a ton of new features like Live View AR navigation, integrated menu scanning, a new real-time location sharing UI, YouTube Music integration, and much more. Now, according to a recent report from Droid-Life, Google has started testing a new feature that will show traffic lights in Google Maps on Android.
The report cites screenshots taken by a reader who lives in West Des Moines, Iowa, which show traffic lights in several intersections around the city. The traffic lights are visible both while using the traditional map view and while navigating, however, they do appear slightly bigger and more noticeable while navigating. The feature is expected to give users a heads up when they’re about to reach a traffic light and even help them plan their route ahead of time to avoid any unnecessary delay.
As of now, the feature is limited to just showing the traffic lights on the map and Google hasn’t included any additional functionality for users. However, that might change by the time the feature is released to more users. The feature currently appears to be in its early stages of development as it’s only available for a small number of users in certain regions on version 10.44.3 of the app. It’s also worth noting that Apple Maps has had a similar feature since last year which offers additional functionality like using Siri to alert users when they’re about to reach a traffic light.
Traffic light icons are now showing up for many people on Google Maps, at least in the United States (via AndroidPolice). You don’t need to turn the feature on manually nor do you need to activate traffic layers. The icons look the same when this feature was first spotted back in July, and they also automatically adapt to the map size. The icons appear when browsing the map or navigating.
The Android tablet market stands in no competition against Apple’s iPad lineup. But still, there’s ground to be covered at price points which Apple does not serve, and options to provide at the points where Apple continues to exist. Samsung’s premier tablets for this year are of course the Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 and Galaxy Tab S7 Plus, but there’s definitely room for many more tablets to be spread across the price spectrum. Samsung appears to be working on a new tablet, as leaked renders now show off the Samsung Galaxy Tab A7 2020 in its Gold and Gray colors.
These leaked renders come to us courtesy of Evan ‘evleaks’ Blass and his Patreon, and they show off the upcoming tablet from Samsung in two colors:
The render shows off a surprisingly basic looking tablet with a single rear camera and a front with decently-sized bezels. The Samsung branding can be seen on the back. Evan does not mention anything else, but the Samsung Galaxy Tab A7 (SM-T505) had earlier appeared in its 10.4″ avatar in a Google Play Console listing. From the listing, we know that the device will come with a 10.4″ display with a resolution of 1200 x 2000 pixels. The tablet will be powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 662 SoC, and at least one variant will have 3GB of RAM.
From the looks and preliminary specifications, one can expect the Galaxy Tab A7 2020 to be targeting some of the early segments of the market. We can expect Samsung to offer multiple storage variants and possible options for Wi-Fi-only and LTE models. It isn’t immediately clear if the tablet would officially support the new S Pen just like the Galaxy Tab S7 series. But even if it does, it is unlikely that an S Pen would be included in the box as the target pricing is expected to be humble. There is currently no information on the existence of a smaller sized variant.
Update 1 (08/31/2020 @ 12:11 PM ET): Google Maps is now showing traffic lights on Android for many people in the U.S. Scroll to the bottom for more information. The article as published on July 8, 2020, is preserved below.
Google Maps is undoubtedly one of the most popular apps in Google’s portfolio, and the company often releases updates to make the service even better. Since its 15th birthday earlier this year in February, the app has received a ton of new features like Live View AR navigation, integrated menu scanning, a new real-time location sharing UI, YouTube Music integration, and much more. Now, according to a recent report from Droid-Life, Google has started testing a new feature that will show traffic lights in Google Maps on Android.
The report cites screenshots taken by a reader who lives in West Des Moines, Iowa, which show traffic lights in several intersections around the city. The traffic lights are visible both while using the traditional map view and while navigating, however, they do appear slightly bigger and more noticeable while navigating. The feature is expected to give users a heads up when they’re about to reach a traffic light and even help them plan their route ahead of time to avoid any unnecessary delay.
As of now, the feature is limited to just showing the traffic lights on the map and Google hasn’t included any additional functionality for users. However, that might change by the time the feature is released to more users. The feature currently appears to be in its early stages of development as it’s only available for a small number of users in certain regions on version 10.44.3 of the app. It’s also worth noting that Apple Maps has had a similar feature since last year which offers additional functionality like using Siri to alert users when they’re about to reach a traffic light.
Traffic light icons are now showing up for many people on Google Maps, at least in the United States (via AndroidPolice). You don’t need to turn the feature on manually nor do you need to activate traffic layers. The icons look the same when this feature was first spotted back in July, and they also automatically adapt to the map size. The icons appear when browsing the map or navigating.
Apart from fixing numerous bugs, the latest DP build of OxygenOS 11 revamps the built-in Gaming Mode by introducing features like floating window and accidental touch prevention. Moreover, OnePlus has managed to ship September 2020 Android security patches through this update, albeit the changelog doesn’t mention anything about it.
Thanks to XDA Senior Member jeffsga88 for the screenshot!
The complete changelog of this update is as follows:
System
Optimized display effects with some UI
Optimized the lagging issue under some settings
Optimized the stability with the upload of log in Community
Optimized delayed response issue with pull-down of the status bar
Fixed the crash/reboot issue under some settings
Fixed the all black issue with status bar in dark mode
Fixed the bug that system cannot be re-started after OTA upgrade
Fixed the disabled “save” feature of screenshot
Game space
Newly added gaming tools box for convenient switches of Fnatic mode, WeChat, QQ and Screen Recorder at one place (Enable it by swiping down from upper right/left corners of the screen in gaming mode)
Newly added mis-touch prevention feature. Enable it, swipe down from the top of the screen, click and the notification bar will pop out
Gallery
Fixed the abnormal increase of brightness when entering the Gallery
Fixed the incomplete screenshot issue in some cases
Shelf
Fixed the issue that background of weather did not display
Network
Improved the performance and stability of network transfers
Download: Android 11 Developer Preview 4 with OxygenOS 11 Design and Features for the OnePlus 8 and OnePlus 8 Pro
After downloading the appropriate package for your phone, go to Settings > System > System Updates, and then click on the top-right icon and select “Local Upgrade” option. From there, select the update package that you have downloaded and proceed.
It is worth mentioning that you probably need a new set of downgrade packages to revert back to the stable release channel. The existing ZIPs (listed below) might not be sufficient due to their older compilation timestamps.
Apart from fixing numerous bugs, the latest DP build of OxygenOS 11 revamps the built-in Gaming Mode by introducing features like floating window and accidental touch prevention. Moreover, OnePlus has managed to ship September 2020 Android security patches through this update, albeit the changelog doesn’t mention anything about it.
Thanks to XDA Senior Member jeffsga88 for the screenshot!
The complete changelog of this update is as follows:
System
Optimized display effects with some UI
Optimized the lagging issue under some settings
Optimized the stability with the upload of log in Community
Optimized delayed response issue with pull-down of the status bar
Fixed the crash/reboot issue under some settings
Fixed the all black issue with status bar in dark mode
Fixed the bug that system cannot be re-started after OTA upgrade
Fixed the disabled “save” feature of screenshot
Game space
Newly added gaming tools box for convenient switches of Fnatic mode, WeChat, QQ and Screen Recorder at one place (Enable it by swiping down from upper right/left corners of the screen in gaming mode)
Newly added mis-touch prevention feature. Enable it, swipe down from the top of the screen, click and the notification bar will pop out
Gallery
Fixed the abnormal increase of brightness when entering the Gallery
Fixed the incomplete screenshot issue in some cases
Shelf
Fixed the issue that background of weather did not display
Network
Improved the performance and stability of network transfers
Download: Android 11 Developer Preview 4 with OxygenOS 11 Design and Features for the OnePlus 8 and OnePlus 8 Pro
After downloading the appropriate package for your phone, go to Settings > System > System Updates, and then click on the top-right icon and select “Local Upgrade” option. From there, select the update package that you have downloaded and proceed.
It is worth mentioning that you probably need a new set of downgrade packages to revert back to the stable release channel. The existing ZIPs (listed below) might not be sufficient due to their older compilation timestamps.
The Qualcomm Snapdragon 732G brings two key improvements over the Snapdragon 730G: a Prime core with higher clock speed (2.3GHz versus 2.2GHz) and a 15% improvement in the Adreno 618 GPU. Everything else remains the same as the Snapdragon 730G, which itself was a smaller gaming-centric improvement over the Snapdragon 730. Consequently, the Snapdragon 732G features 1x Kryo 470 “Prime” core clocked at up to 2.3GHz, 1x Kryo 470 “Performance” core clocked at up to 2.2GHz, and 6x Kryo 470 “Efficiency” cores clocked at up to 1.8GHz. The microarchitecture of the Prime and Performance cores are based on ARM’s Cortex-A76 design while the microarchitecture of the 6 Efficiency cores is based on ARM’s Cortex-A55 design. The SoC is fabricated on Samsung’s 8nm LPP process.
The Qualcomm Snapdragon 732G also continues to feature several Snapdragon Elite Gaming features, just like the Snapdragon 730G. These features include Qualcomm Game Jank Reducer, Vulkan 1.1 Graphics Driver, True HDR, and anti-cheat extensions. There’s also the Spectra 350 Image Signal Processor with support for 4K HDR video capture, the 4th generation Qualcomm AI Engine with up to 3.6 TOPS, the Hexagon 688 DSP, Qualcomm Quick Charge 4+ support, the Snapdragon X15 LTE Modem with support for 3-CA and 4×4 MIMO on two carriers, support for the Qualcomm FastConnect 6200 subsystem, and support for Qualcomm’s Aqstic audio codec, among other features.
Qualcomm Snapdragon 732G Specifications & Features
Qualcomm AI Engine
Adreno 618 GPU
Kryo 470 CPU
Hexagon 688 Processor
Hexagon Vector eXtensions
Hexagon Tensor Accelerator
Hexagon Voice Assistant Accelerator
Qualcomm® Sensing Hub
Qualcomm® Neural Processing SDK
Modem
Snapdragon X15 LTE Modem
Support for 800 Mbps LTE
Downlink: LTE Cat 15 up to 800 Mbps, 3 x 20 MHz carrier aggregation, up to 256-QAM, up to 4 x 4 MIMO on two aggregated carriers
Uplink: LTE Cat 13 up to 150 Mbps, Qualcomm® Snapdragon Upload+ (2 x 20 MHz carrier aggregation, up to 64-QAM)
Dual SIM Dual VoLTE (DSDV)
Qualcomm® All Mode with support for all major cellular modes plus LAA. Support for:
VoLTE with SRVCC to 3G and 2G, HD and Ultra HD Voice (EVS), CSFB to 3G and 2G
Voice over Wi-Fi (VoWiFi) with LTE call continuity
Low Power Geofencing and Tracking, Sensor-assisted Navigation
Near Field Communications (NFC) support
DisplayPort over USB Type-C support
Quick Charge 4+ technology
Part number: SM7150-AC
Perhaps the most exciting news coming along with this announcement is the fact that the SoC will first be featured in an upcoming POCO smartphone.
“Snapdragon 732G will deliver a powerful gaming experience, sophisticated on-device AI, and superior performance. We’re excited to work with POCO on the new POCO smartphone powered by the enhanced Snapdragon 732G globally.”
“We are extremely excited about the upcoming POCO smartphone and our collaboration with Qualcomm Technologies that allowed us to create the first device on the market with the latest Snapdragon 732G Mobile Platform. We believe the device will set a new benchmark in the mid-range category, completely redefining the relationship between a phone’s price and its capabilities.”
Neither Qualcomm nor POCO explicitly confirm the device’s marketing name. But considering the fact that POCO has already started teasing and talking about the POCO X3 NFC, one needn’t even guess which phone would be the first with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 732G.
The Qualcomm Snapdragon 732G brings two key improvements over the Snapdragon 730G: a Prime core with higher clock speed (2.3GHz versus 2.2GHz) and a 15% improvement in the Adreno 618 GPU. Everything else remains the same as the Snapdragon 730G, which itself was a smaller gaming-centric improvement over the Snapdragon 730. Consequently, the Snapdragon 732G features 1x Kryo 470 “Prime” core clocked at up to 2.3GHz, 1x Kryo 470 “Performance” core clocked at up to 2.2GHz, and 6x Kryo 470 “Efficiency” cores clocked at up to 1.8GHz. The microarchitecture of the Prime and Performance cores are based on ARM’s Cortex-A76 design while the microarchitecture of the 6 Efficiency cores is based on ARM’s Cortex-A55 design. The SoC is fabricated on Samsung’s 8nm LPP process.
The Qualcomm Snapdragon 732G also continues to feature several Snapdragon Elite Gaming features, just like the Snapdragon 730G. These features include Qualcomm Game Jank Reducer, Vulkan 1.1 Graphics Driver, True HDR, and anti-cheat extensions. There’s also the Spectra 350 Image Signal Processor with support for 4K HDR video capture, the 4th generation Qualcomm AI Engine with up to 3.6 TOPS, the Hexagon 688 DSP, Qualcomm Quick Charge 4+ support, the Snapdragon X15 LTE Modem with support for 3-CA and 4×4 MIMO on two carriers, support for the Qualcomm FastConnect 6200 subsystem, and support for Qualcomm’s Aqstic audio codec, among other features.
Qualcomm Snapdragon 732G Specifications & Features
Qualcomm AI Engine
Adreno 618 GPU
Kryo 470 CPU
Hexagon 688 Processor
Hexagon Vector eXtensions
Hexagon Tensor Accelerator
Hexagon Voice Assistant Accelerator
Qualcomm® Sensing Hub
Qualcomm® Neural Processing SDK
Modem
Snapdragon X15 LTE Modem
Support for 800 Mbps LTE
Downlink: LTE Cat 15 up to 800 Mbps, 3 x 20 MHz carrier aggregation, up to 256-QAM, up to 4 x 4 MIMO on two aggregated carriers
Uplink: LTE Cat 13 up to 150 Mbps, Qualcomm® Snapdragon Upload+ (2 x 20 MHz carrier aggregation, up to 64-QAM)
Dual SIM Dual VoLTE (DSDV)
Qualcomm® All Mode with support for all major cellular modes plus LAA. Support for:
VoLTE with SRVCC to 3G and 2G, HD and Ultra HD Voice (EVS), CSFB to 3G and 2G
Voice over Wi-Fi (VoWiFi) with LTE call continuity
Low Power Geofencing and Tracking, Sensor-assisted Navigation
Near Field Communications (NFC) support
DisplayPort over USB Type-C support
Quick Charge 4+ technology
Part number: SM7150-AC
Perhaps the most exciting news coming along with this announcement is the fact that the SoC will first be featured in an upcoming POCO smartphone.
“Snapdragon 732G will deliver a powerful gaming experience, sophisticated on-device AI, and superior performance. We’re excited to work with POCO on the new POCO smartphone powered by the enhanced Snapdragon 732G globally.”
“We are extremely excited about the upcoming POCO smartphone and our collaboration with Qualcomm Technologies that allowed us to create the first device on the market with the latest Snapdragon 732G Mobile Platform. We believe the device will set a new benchmark in the mid-range category, completely redefining the relationship between a phone’s price and its capabilities.”
Neither Qualcomm nor POCO explicitly confirm the device’s marketing name. But considering the fact that POCO has already started teasing and talking about the POCO X3 NFC, one needn’t even guess which phone would be the first with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 732G.
Motorola burst back into the flagship scene earlier this year with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865-powered, 5G-enabled Motorola Edge+. Alongside the Edge+, Motorola also unveiled the slightly cheaper Edge with the upper mid-range (but still 5G-enabled) Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G. And about a month ago, Motorola had announced an even more affordable 5G-enabled smartphone in the form of the Moto G 5G Plus. Now, Motorola is bringing over this smartphone to the USA in the form of the Motorola One 5G.
Motorola One 5G: Specifications
Specification
Motorola Moto G 5G Plus / Motorola One 5G
Dimensions & Weight
168 x 74 x 9 mm
207g
Display
6.7″ FHD+ LTPS LCD
21:9 aspect ratio, 2520 x 1080
90Hz refresh rate
HDR10
Dual hole-punch display
SoC
Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G:
1x Kryo 475 (ARM Cortex-A76-based) Prime core @ 2.4GHz
The Motorola One 5G is a rebranded Moto G 5G Plus, but we’re okay with the rebranding because that was a terrible name in the first place. One of the highlights of this device is its 21:9 aspect ratio display. Motorola mentions that 87% of its users preferred a 21:9 aspect ratio, so that is what it adopted on this smartphone. You do get a 90Hz refresh rate, though the panel is LCD — but since this phone is not aiming to be a flagship, this specification isn’t judged as harshly. The smartphone itself has a humble design made largely out of polycarbonate, so most of the 207g weight is coming from the beefy 5,000 mAh battery.
On the inside, you get a Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G, which should help keep things running smoothly despite not being an 8-series flagship SoC.
The Motorola One 5G comes with Android 10 out of the box. The OS is largely left unadulterated, but you get a few Motorola touches like the “chop to launch flashlight” feature and the Moto Power Touch feature that lets you reassign the double-power-button press. The power button also integrates the fingerprint sensor.
Motorola is only committing to one year of Android OS updates and two years of security updates at this moment.
Pricing and Availability
The Motorola One 5G will be a sub-$500 device in the USA and will be available through AT&T (sub-6GHz) and Verizon (with mmWave) in 4GB + 128GB configuration. Motorola has not shared the exact date of availability and pricing yet, and we also presume that the mmWave variant will cost some more. There will not be any unlocked versions of this phone in the USA. It remains to be seen how this phone stacks up against cheaper devices like the recent Google Pixel 4a.
Motorola burst back into the flagship scene earlier this year with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865-powered, 5G-enabled Motorola Edge+. Alongside the Edge+, Motorola also unveiled the slightly cheaper Edge with the upper mid-range (but still 5G-enabled) Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G. And about a month ago, Motorola had announced an even more affordable 5G-enabled smartphone in the form of the Moto G 5G Plus. Now, Motorola is bringing over this smartphone to the USA in the form of the Motorola One 5G.
Motorola One 5G: Specifications
Specification
Motorola Moto G 5G Plus / Motorola One 5G
Dimensions & Weight
168 x 74 x 9 mm
207g
Display
6.7″ FHD+ LTPS LCD
21:9 aspect ratio, 2520 x 1080
90Hz refresh rate
HDR10
Dual hole-punch display
SoC
Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G:
1x Kryo 475 (ARM Cortex-A76-based) Prime core @ 2.4GHz
The Motorola One 5G is a rebranded Moto G 5G Plus, but we’re okay with the rebranding because that was a terrible name in the first place. One of the highlights of this device is its 21:9 aspect ratio display. Motorola mentions that 87% of its users preferred a 21:9 aspect ratio, so that is what it adopted on this smartphone. You do get a 90Hz refresh rate, though the panel is LCD — but since this phone is not aiming to be a flagship, this specification isn’t judged as harshly. The smartphone itself has a humble design made largely out of polycarbonate, so most of the 207g weight is coming from the beefy 5,000 mAh battery.
On the inside, you get a Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G, which should help keep things running smoothly despite not being an 8-series flagship SoC.
The Motorola One 5G comes with Android 10 out of the box. The OS is largely left unadulterated, but you get a few Motorola touches like the “chop to launch flashlight” feature and the Moto Power Touch feature that lets you reassign the double-power-button press. The power button also integrates the fingerprint sensor.
Motorola is only committing to one year of Android OS updates and two years of security updates at this moment.
Pricing and Availability
The Motorola One 5G will be a sub-$500 device in the USA and will be available through AT&T (sub-6GHz) and Verizon (with mmWave) in 4GB + 128GB configuration. Motorola has not shared the exact date of availability and pricing yet, and we also presume that the mmWave variant will cost some more. There will not be any unlocked versions of this phone in the USA. It remains to be seen how this phone stacks up against cheaper devices like the recent Google Pixel 4a.
Realme jumped into the league of affordable high-end phones by launching the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 Plus-powered Realme X2 Pro (our review) back in 2019. The Chinese OEM reused the same SoC while designing this year’s Realme X3 series, which turned out to be an effective decision to keep the price low without sacrificing the raw horsepower. The Realme X2 Pro was launched with ColorOS 6.1 based on Android 9 Pie, while it received its Android 10/Realme UI update a few months ago and is scheduled to get an “Early Access” build of Android 11 in the coming days. The Realme X3/X3 SuperZoom, on the other hand, run on Android 10-based Realme UI out of the box. All of these three smartphones have recently received new Realme UI updates with tons of new software features and optimizations.
The version number of Realme X2 Pro’s new OTA is RMX1931EX_11.C.31. FYI, both the Realme X3 and the Realme X3 SuperZoom share a common codebase, thus they have picked up a unified firmware with the build number RMX2081PU_11.A.41. There are a few notable changes in these updates: First, Realme has finally brought in the August 2020 Android security patches to these phones through the new builds of Realme UI. Next, the company has added support for auto-scrolling screenshot, “Multi-user feature”, and “Super Power Saving Mode” – the last two can be accessed from the Settings app. The experimental “Smooth Scrolling” feature has also made its way to the Realme X2 Pro through the new build.
Changelog
Expand the lists below to see the device-specific changelogs:
Changelog of software version RMX1931EX_11.C.31 for the Realme X2 Pro
Security
Android Security Patch: August, 2020
realme Lab
Added Smooth scrolling feature
Added Super nighttime standby feature
Added DC dimming feature
Camera
Added Camera Text scanner feature
Screenshot
Added auto scroll feature in scrolling screenshot
Settings
Added Super Power Saving Mode
Added default sound recording device option
Added Deep cleanup feature in Process Manager
Added return button in the screenshot preview interface
Added Multi-user feature
Added Quick guide feature in the battery setting interface
Added Quick guide feature in the security support interface
Added Quick guide feature in the other settings interface
Added long press to copy IMEI in the status information interface
Added automatic downloads option for app updates in the Wi-Fi interface
Optimized automatically hide option for floating ball in the full screen interface
Optimized status bar viewing, added second display option
Status Bar
Added OTG Switch toggle to notification panel
Optimized viewing for system update prompt pop-up window
Optimized “Mute-Bell-Vibrate” icon state
Flashlight
Added short press power button to turn off the flashlight while screen-off
System
Added long press to uninstall apps directly in the app drawer
Fixed font display issue for charging animation
Fixed crashing issue when opening hidden apps with access codes
Fixed the probabilistic connection issue when using Wi-Fi
Changelog of software version RMX2081PU_11.A.41 for the Realme X3/X3 SuperZoom
Security
Android Security Patch: August, 2020
realme Lab
Added the Super nighttime standby feature
Screenshot
Added auto scroll feature in scrolling screenshot
Settings
Added Super Power Saving Mode
Added Icon Pull-down gesture feature in launcher settings
Added return button in the screenshot preview interface
Added Multi-user feature
Added Quick guide feature in the battery setting interface
Added Quick guide feature in the security support interface
Added Quick guide feature in the other settings interface
Added automatic downloads option for app updates in the Wi-Fi interface
Optimized status bar viewing, added second display option
Status Bar
Added independent Switch toggles of focus mode
Optimized viewing for system update prompt pop-up window
Optimized “Mute-Bell-Vibrate” icon state
System
Fixed the probabilistic connection issue when using Wi-Fi
Fixed font display issue of charging animation
Fixed crashing issue when opening hidden apps with access codes
Download
Realme is known for its staged rollout model. The company prefers to push the updates randomly to a limited number of users and switch to a broader rollout a few days later to avoid the spread of showstopper bugs. Nevertheless, you can download the sideload-friendly full firmware package (in OZIP format) corresponding to the aforementioned builds from the index below and flash them right away.
Realme jumped into the league of affordable high-end phones by launching the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 Plus-powered Realme X2 Pro (our review) back in 2019. The Chinese OEM reused the same SoC while designing this year’s Realme X3 series, which turned out to be an effective decision to keep the price low without sacrificing the raw horsepower. The Realme X2 Pro was launched with ColorOS 6.1 based on Android 9 Pie, while it received its Android 10/Realme UI update a few months ago and is scheduled to get an “Early Access” build of Android 11 in the coming days. The Realme X3/X3 SuperZoom, on the other hand, run on Android 10-based Realme UI out of the box. All of these three smartphones have recently received new Realme UI updates with tons of new software features and optimizations.
The version number of Realme X2 Pro’s new OTA is RMX1931EX_11.C.31. FYI, both the Realme X3 and the Realme X3 SuperZoom share a common codebase, thus they have picked up a unified firmware with the build number RMX2081PU_11.A.41. There are a few notable changes in these updates: First, Realme has finally brought in the August 2020 Android security patches to these phones through the new builds of Realme UI. Next, the company has added support for auto-scrolling screenshot, “Multi-user feature”, and “Super Power Saving Mode” – the last two can be accessed from the Settings app. The experimental “Smooth Scrolling” feature has also made its way to the Realme X2 Pro through the new build.
Changelog
Expand the lists below to see the device-specific changelogs:
Changelog of software version RMX1931EX_11.C.31 for the Realme X2 Pro
Security
Android Security Patch: August, 2020
realme Lab
Added Smooth scrolling feature
Added Super nighttime standby feature
Added DC dimming feature
Camera
Added Camera Text scanner feature
Screenshot
Added auto scroll feature in scrolling screenshot
Settings
Added Super Power Saving Mode
Added default sound recording device option
Added Deep cleanup feature in Process Manager
Added return button in the screenshot preview interface
Added Multi-user feature
Added Quick guide feature in the battery setting interface
Added Quick guide feature in the security support interface
Added Quick guide feature in the other settings interface
Added long press to copy IMEI in the status information interface
Added automatic downloads option for app updates in the Wi-Fi interface
Optimized automatically hide option for floating ball in the full screen interface
Optimized status bar viewing, added second display option
Status Bar
Added OTG Switch toggle to notification panel
Optimized viewing for system update prompt pop-up window
Optimized “Mute-Bell-Vibrate” icon state
Flashlight
Added short press power button to turn off the flashlight while screen-off
System
Added long press to uninstall apps directly in the app drawer
Fixed font display issue for charging animation
Fixed crashing issue when opening hidden apps with access codes
Fixed the probabilistic connection issue when using Wi-Fi
Changelog of software version RMX2081PU_11.A.41 for the Realme X3/X3 SuperZoom
Security
Android Security Patch: August, 2020
realme Lab
Added the Super nighttime standby feature
Screenshot
Added auto scroll feature in scrolling screenshot
Settings
Added Super Power Saving Mode
Added Icon Pull-down gesture feature in launcher settings
Added return button in the screenshot preview interface
Added Multi-user feature
Added Quick guide feature in the battery setting interface
Added Quick guide feature in the security support interface
Added Quick guide feature in the other settings interface
Added automatic downloads option for app updates in the Wi-Fi interface
Optimized status bar viewing, added second display option
Status Bar
Added independent Switch toggles of focus mode
Optimized viewing for system update prompt pop-up window
Optimized “Mute-Bell-Vibrate” icon state
System
Fixed the probabilistic connection issue when using Wi-Fi
Fixed font display issue of charging animation
Fixed crashing issue when opening hidden apps with access codes
Download
Realme is known for its staged rollout model. The company prefers to push the updates randomly to a limited number of users and switch to a broader rollout a few days later to avoid the spread of showstopper bugs. Nevertheless, you can download the sideload-friendly full firmware package (in OZIP format) corresponding to the aforementioned builds from the index below and flash them right away.
Samsung has quietly launched the long-rumored Galaxy M51 in Germany. As a brand new entry in Samsung’s popular Galaxy M series, the Galaxy M51 exists as a higher-placed alternative to the Galaxy M31s, which was launched earlier in July. The Galaxy M51 brings along several notable improvements, including a behemoth battery, a (possible) switch over to a Snapdragon processor, and a slightly bigger display.
The Samsung Galaxy M51 sports a 6.7-inch Super AMOLED display with a centered hole-punch and full HD+ resolution. Although Samsung’s official listing doesn’t make it clear which processor the phone is using, it’s likely powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 730 SoC, as previously rumored.
The phone offers 6GB of RAM and 128GB of UFS 2.1 storage with support for SD card expansion. In terms of optics, the Galaxy M51 continues to use the same setup as the Galaxy M31s, packing a 64MP primary camera, a 12MP ultra-wide camera, a 5MP depth sensor, and a 5MP macro lens. Even the 32MP selfie camera appears to be unchanged.
The insane 7,000 mAh battery is what gives the Galaxy M51 its headline. The 6000 mAh battery fitted on previous Galaxy M series phones was the largest in its segment. And the fact that Samsung managed to beef up the capacity even further is nothing short of brilliant. Samsung also includes a 25W fast charger inside the box, the same one that comes with the Galaxy M31s and some of Samsung’s flagships.
On the software front, the Galaxy M51 comes running One UI 2.1 based on Android 10. Other specs of the phone include a side-mounted fingerprint scanner, a USB Type C port, a single bottom-firing speaker, a 3.5mm audio jack, and Bluetooth 5.
Available in Black and White colors, the Galaxy M51 is priced at €360 ($429) and can be pre-ordered through Samsung’s German website. The preorders will start shipping out starting September 11. Samsung hasn’t yet detailed when it will bring the device to other markets such as India, but we hope to see it launch in the country.
Upload+ (2 x 20 MHz carrier aggregation, up to 64-QAM)
