Call of Duty Mobile is currently available under a Beta program.
After a huge success with PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds or PUBG Mobile, Tencent Games has finally released the Beta version of the much-awaited game, Call of Duty Mobile. While the game can be played on any mid-range or flagship smartphones, here are some of the best smartphones we recommend to get the best experience.
OnePlus 7 Pro
OnePlus 7 Pro has a truly bezel-less display with 90Hz refresh rate.
OnePlus recently unveiled their all-new flagship smartphone, the OnePlus 7 Pro. It is currently one of the only phones in India to come with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor coupled with up to 12GB of RAM. It also comes with Liquid Cooling System as well as a 2K AMOLED display with a 90Hz refresh rate making it one of the best smartphones for gaming.
Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus
Samsung Galaxy S10+ is currently one of the best smartphones available.
While the whole Samsung Galaxy S10-lineup will be able to run Call of Duty Mobile, the Galaxy S10 Plus should be the choice of most as it offers a much larger display and comes with a larger battery as well. The smartphone comes with the latest Exynos 9820 processor coupled with up to 12GB of RAM.
Apple iPhone XS Max
Call of Duty Mobile is also available on iOS devices.
In case you are an Apple fan or just need the best experience, you should opt-in for the Apple iPhone XS or iPhone XS Max. The smartphones come with the Apple A12 Bionic chipset, which is way better than the Snapdragon 855. Also, these phones come with a much optimised operating system.
Poco F1
Xiaomi Poco F1 is one of the best smartphones in the price segment.
In case you are on a budget but still need to play Call of Duty Mobile on the highest settings possible, the Poco F1 should be your pick. The smartphones come with last year's flagship Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor paired with up to 8GB of RAM. The Poco F1 also comes with a Liquid Cooling system, which means long gaming sessions will never be a problem.
Huawei recently launched their flagship Huawei P30 Pro in India. While it comes with flagship specifications, it also brings a great set of cameras. It also comes with a 6.47-inch OLED display with a resolution of 2340x1080 pixels. The smartphone packs in a huge 4,200mAh battery, which is suitable for long gaming sessions.
Poco F1 has one of the best camera setups in the price range.
Smartphones have become exciting at the price range of Rs. 15,000 to Rs. 20,000 with 48-megapixel sensors and much better processors coming into the play. While the options are vast, we have cut them down to a list of top 5 smartphones that have the best cameras in the price range.
Poco F1
In case you are looking for a flagship-grade experience but do not want to shred a lot of cash, the Poco F1 will be the best option. It comes with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 SoC coupled with Adreno 630 GPU. As for the cameras, there is a 12-megapixel + 5-megapixel dual-camera setup at the back, whcih offers one of the best in class photography experiences. Xiaomi Poco F1 is currently available at a starting price of Rs. 19,990.
Redmi Note 7 Pro
Redmi Note 7 Pro comes with a 48-megapixel camera at the back.
Xiaomi's sub-brand Redmi recently launched their Note 7 Pro in India and it has become one of the best selling smartphones. The device comes with a 6.3-inch FullHD+ display with a waterdrop style notch up front. It is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 675 chipset coupled with up to 6GB of RAM. It is available at a starting price of Rs. 13,999.
Realme 3 Pro
Realme 3 Pro comes with a gradient back design.
Realme recently launched the Realme 3 Pro in India. The smartphone brings in a dual-camera setup at the back consisting of a 16-megapixel primary and a 5-megapixel secondary sensor. Up front, there is a 25-megapixel selfie shooter. The phone is able to offer all this with a price tag of just Rs. 13,999.
Samsung Galaxy A50
Samsung Galaxy A50 sports an in-display fingerprint scanner.
Samsung Galaxy A50 has a lot to offer for a starting price of Rs. 19,999. The smartphone comes with an in-display fingerprint scanner and a Super AMOLED display. It is powered by the Exynos 9610 processor coupled with up to 6GB of RAM. It also gets a triple camera setup at the back and a waterdrop style notch up front.
Oppo F11 comes with a 48-megapixel camera at the back.
While Oppo smartphone might not be the best value for your money, they sure are good at the cameras department. Available at Rs. 17,990, the Oppo F11 brings in a 48-megapixel camera at the back and a 16-megapixel camera at the front. The smartphone also packs in a MediaTek Helio P70 processor coupled with up to 6GB of RAM.
While Google has been known to keep an eye on you, the company has also been keeping track of all the online purchases made using other e-commerce websites like Amazon, Flipkart. The company, however, does not directly deal with these giants but read through the purchase receipts sent to your Gmail account.
According to a recent report by CNN, Google has a "Purchases" page where it shows most of the items you have purchased since 2012. The report further suggests that they have spotted purchases from different mobile apps including Amazon, DoorDash and Seamless. There were even purchases from stores like Macy’s. However, none of these purchases was made directly from Google. They even verified that receipts of these purchases were sent to the Gmail account and that is how the company listed them on the "Purchases" page.
Now even you can go to the Google Purchases page to see the list of purchases you made online. When you go to this page, you will need to enter your Google credentials in order to see everything you purchased till date.
The CNN report also got a quote from Google spokesperson, “To help you easily view and keep track of your purchases, bookings and subscriptions in one place, we’ve created a private destination that can only be seen by you”.
“You can delete this information at any time. We don’t use any information from your Gmail messages to serve you ads, and that includes the email receipts and confirmations shown on the Purchase page,” the spokesperson further added.
Though the Google spokesperson said you can delete these records anytime, it is not as easy as it sounds. Once you head over to the Purchases page, you can click on the particular page to get an option to ‘Remove Purchase.’ However, the page will immediately prompt “To remove this purchase, delete the email” and it will then take you to your Gmail inbox. So, deleting all the purchases might take quite some time as you will have to delete the email associated with that purchase as well.
The Honor Band 4 Running Edition, is one unique fitness tracker.
Honor, a brand known for its smartphones, unveiled its range of fitness trackers in India recently. One of their newly announced products was their Honor Band 4 Running Edition. Coming in at only Rs. 1,599 the Honor Band 4 Running Edition is one of the cheapest fitness trackers you can buy right now.
Honor Band 4 Running Edition: Specifications
Honor Band 4 Running Edition sports a 0.5-inch OLED panel. The company claims the device to be water resistant up to 50 meters. It can be used to track your steps from your hand, worn like a band or from your shoe attached with the accessory provided in the box. It also comes with something Honor calls “professional running posture monitoring”. All of this is backed by a 77mAh battery which the company claims lasts up to 21 days.
Price: Rs 1,599
Honor Band 4 Running Edition Review: Design & Display
Honor Band 4 Running Edition features a 0.5-inch OLED display which unlike its older sibling the Honor Band 4, is not a touchscreen. Compared to the competition, it lacks a couple of features, but what it lacks in features it makes up in price.
The Honor Band 4 Running Edition looks great.
The Running Edition has a capacitive touch sensitive button at the bottom that helps with navigating with the menu. You can also enable navigation with wrist movements from the Huawei Health app where it syncs, but we found it to be responding in the situation when it wasn't desired. The button and the display casing it doesn't feel cheap and is not prone to scratching easily. The band comes in a variety of colour options, however, only two are available in India as of now: Lava Red and Green. The band is made out of silicon and doesn't feel special nor does it feel cheap.
Flipping the device reveals nothing but the company branding and the product information. Sadly, the Running Edition doesn't sport a heart rate sensor which would have been great with the whole monitoring your run theme. However, considering it was intended to be used as a clip on to your shoe, it makes very less sense to include one.
Honor Band 4 Running Edition Review: Features
Honor Band 4 Running Edition is packed with quite a few features. It comes with all the basics that we expect from a fitness tracker with a screen, notifications, step count, sleep tracking, alarms and much more.
The notification interface is quite bad as it only shows a call icon for calls, a message icon for SMSes and a standard information icon for any other notifications, leaving you clueless which app has sent the notification and what is inside of that notification. It acts as a reminder to check your phone, which becomes annoying after a while. We tested it with the OnePlus 6T and the Honor View 20 and the results were the same.
The Shoe mode works like a miracle.
Talking about battery life, the 77mAh battery charges in less than an hour from zero to hundred, however being connected to my phone all the time with notifications showering in, it manages to last around 10 days on a full charge. The company's claim of 21 days is highly overrated and can be achieved with minimal usage only. Also, if you turn off the device, you will need to connect it to a charger to turn it back on which is quite annoying.
It can be used in run mode or normal mode, depending on where you clip it in
However, it's not all bad with the Honor Band 4 Running Edition. The step tracking is accurate than the rest of the fitness trackers out there in this price range. I compared it with the Mi Band 2 and the step count in my Honor View 20 and the results proved that the Honor Band 4 had a more accurate step count. The running mode, where you attach it with your shoes using the clip on accessory provided in the box is unique and provides an excellent step and calory track by being able to monitor your footsteps directly.
Honor Band 4 Running Edition Review: Verdict
The Running Edition is one of the accurate bands in this price range
Honor Band 4 Running Edition looks average and has a lot of issues, which will leave its buyers a lot to desire. However, the ability to track your footsteps directly by attaching it to your shoes and the accuracy of its step tracking considered its price, makes it one of the best step trackers in its budget segment right now.
So if you are looking for a smart fitness tracker, Honor Band 4 Running Edition isn't for you, but if you are looking for a more accurate fitness tracker with fitness-related features in that budget segment, the Running Edition won't disappoint you at all.
Asus Zenfone 6 is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor paired with an Adreno 640 GPU.
Asus Zenfone 6 has been launched in Spain at a press event. It is the successor to last year's Asus Zenfone 5Z and is also the first smartphone from the company to feature a full-screen display paired with a flip camera. The dual camera module sits on the back, however, when required can flip to become the front camera.
This is an interesting implementation of the flip camera mechanism as now users can stop the camera at any flip angle to take interesting shots. The camera module just like the motorised pop-up selfie camera module on the OnePlus 7 Pro comes with fall protection. With this feature, if the device is going to fall, it will automatically retract the camera module.
Asus Zenfone 6: Price
Asus Zenfone 6 will be made available in three: 6GB RAM/64GB storage, 6GB RAM/128GB storage and 8GB RAM/256GB storage priced at Euro 499 (approximately Rs. 39,000), Euro 559 (approximately Rs. 43,800) and Euro 599 (approximately Rs. 47,000). The device will come in two colour options - Midnight Black and Twilight Silver.
Asus Zenfone 6: Specifications
Asus Zenfone 6 sports a 6.4-inch full HD+ IPS display with a resolution of 2340x1080 pixels with a 92 percent screen-to-body ratio. It will be powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor paired with an Adreno 640 GPU. The device will come with 6GB/8GB of RAM along with 64GB/128GB/256GB internal storage expandable up to 256GB via a microSD card.
It will run the company's own Zen UI 6 software based on Google's Android 9.0 Pie operating system. The company has promised that it will be updating the software to Android Q and Android R, whenever they come. All of this will be backed by a 5,000mAh non-removable battery with support for Qualcomm's Quick Charge 4.0 fast charging technology.
As far as the optics go, the device will sport a motorised flippable dual camera setup, which will consist of a 48-megapixel primary sensor paired with a secondary 13-megapixel ultra-wide angle sensor. The camera will come with laser auto-focus and a dual LED flash module.
PUBG Mobile or PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds Mobile has finally received its much awaited 0.12.5 update. The update brings tons of changes on board along with the all-new Season 7. According to a recent post by the company, the game will be updated at 9:30 PM IST today.
Apart from Season 7, the new update brings the new Royale Pass as well. Speaking of passes, Tencent Games has also added a new for Elite Pass and Elite Pass Plus holders, the EZ Mission License. It will allow players to unlock and play Royale Pass challenges a week before all the other players. It also brings free mission cards every week.
Alongside such exciting features, the new PUBG Mobile update also brings a new handheld weapon called Skorpion. It is a machine piston that uses 9mm ammo and has an ammo capacity of 20 rounds. The gun will be available in all the existing maps. Additionally, a new set of character beards and parachute trails have been added.
The company has also brought some improvements and bug fixes to the game. These include the return of the subscription feature, the addition of new category tabs, which can be found in the in-game shop. They have also made adjustments to the audio in order to reduce interruptions and noise.
The all-new PUBG Mobile 0.12.5 update will be available soon to play. The update now also allows the users to purchase in-game items using their BP’s (Battle Points).
While most businesses are now generating more revenues by showing ads on their platforms, the biggest tech giant Google is now planning to generate even larger revenues using the same method. Ads on Google's services is nothing new but the company is now working on bringing the ads to the Google app on Android and iOS.
“Rolling out to all advertisers globally later this year, Discovery ads are a new way to reach people across Google properties in the moments when they’re open to discovering your products and services,” Prabhakar Raghavan, Senior Vice President, Ads and Commerce, Google wrote in a blog post.
He further added, “By combining search intent with a more interactive visual format, gallery ads make it easier for you to communicate what your brand has to offer. We’ve found that, on average, ad groups including one or more gallery ad have up to 25 per cent more interactions-paid clicks or swipes-at the absolute top of the mobile Search results page".
These advertisements will be shown to the users in the “Discover” section of the application. It is also being said that just like its other services, Google will personalise the ads algorithmically. Further, the company also has plans on showing up to eight pictures under the search results as a part of its new “Gallery ads” feature. Google also claims that the ads will also appear on the homepage of Google Shopping.
Oppo's sub-brand Realme has just launched their tenth smartphone, the Realme X. While its the latest smartphone from the comapny, it is also one of the best it has ever produced. Realme X has been made available to certain markets but has not yet arrived in India yet. So, here are some of the alternatives you can consider.
Redmi Note 7 Pro
Redmi Note 7 Pro comes with a waterdrop style notch.
Xiaomi's sub-brand Redmi recently launched their Note 7 Pro in India and it has become one of the best selling smartphones. The device comes with a 6.3-inch FullHD+ display with a waterdrop style notch up front. It is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 675 chipset coupled with up to 6GB of RAM. It is available at a starting price of Rs. 13,999.
Realme 3 Pro
Realme 3 Pro comes with a gradient back design.
While the Realme 3 Pro is not as good as the company's recently launched flagship, it does bring a ton of exciting things at just Rs. 13,999. Some of the key features include a waterdrop style notch and the company's latest VOOC 3.0 fast charging.
Poco F1
Xiaomi Poco F1 is one of the best smartphones in the price segment.
While the Poco F1 might not have enough surprises like a pop-up selfie camera, it is the most powerful one in the price segment. It comes with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 SoC coupled with Adreno 630 GPU. It packs in up to 8GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage. Xiaomi Poco F1 is currently available at a starting price of Rs. 19,990.
Oppo K1
Oppo K1 comes with an in-display fingerprint scanner.
Oppo K1 is one of the very few smartphones to feature an in-display fingerprint scanner at this price segment. Also, it comes with an AMOLED display, which is great for watching content. It comes with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 processor coupled with 4GB of RAM. Priced at Rs. 16,990, the Oppo K1 has a lot to offer.
Samsung Galaxy A50 sports an in-display fingerprint scanner.
Samsung Galaxy A50 has a lot to offer for a starting price of Rs. 19,999. The smartphone comes with an in-display fingerprint scanner and a Super AMOLED display. It is powered by the Exynos 9610 processor coupled with up to 6GB of RAM. The smartphone comes with a triple camera setup at the back and a waterdrop style notch up front.
OnePlus hosted an event yesterday where they launched three new products including the OnePlus 7, OnePlus 7 Pro and the OnePlus Bullets Wireless 2. While the star of the show was the OnePlus 7 Pro, the crowd shouted as hard as they could when they saw the pricing of the all-new OnePlus 7.
OnePlus 7 First Impressions: Specifications
In terms of the specifications, the OnePlus 7 gets a 6.2-inch Full HD+ Super AMOLED display with a waterdrop style notch. The device is powered by the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor coupled with an Adreno 640 GPU. It comes with up to 8GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage. It runs on Oxygen OS based on Android 9.0 Pie operating system. All of this is backed by a 3,700mAh, which supports the company's old 20W fast charging technology.
OnePlus 7 First Impressions: Display
The smartphone features a waterdrop style notch.
While the OnePlus 7 Pro had all the attention, the OnePlus 7 shocked everyone with its pricing. At a starting price of Rs. 32,999, the OnePlus 7 brings a display that very similar to its predecessor, the OnePlus 6T. Though the phone does not get a full-screen display like its larger sibling, it does get a waterdrop stye notch as well as an under the display fingerprint scanner.
OnePlus 7 First Impressions: Design
The Mirror Red colour looks quite attractive.
Picking up the OnePlus 7 reminds me a lot of the OnePlus 6 and OnePlus 6T. The smartphone basically brings the same design with just improved specifications. While the design is very similar, the company did play around a bit with the camera modules as they now look a bit different. OnePlus has also introduced a new colour, Mirror Red and Mirror Grey. Both colours look quite attractive.
OnePlus 7 First Impressions: Features
While the OnePlus 7 looks more or less like its predecessor, it has some serious changes under the hood. The new Snapdragon 855 processor brings much better performance. Apart from that, the smartphone also features a 48-megapixel camera at the back, which produces significantly better images when compared to the OnePlus 6T. However, we will need more time with the device to explore more.
OnePlus 7 First Impressions: Verdict
OnePlus launched the OnePlus 7 at a price tag of Rs. 32,999 for the 6GB+128GB variant. The 8GB+256GB variant is priced at Rs. 37,999. Basically, the company is offering a much-improved version of the OnePlus 6T at a much lower launch price. However, we will need to test out these improvements thoroughly in our full review.
Disclaimer: The author is currently in Bengaluru on the invite of OnePlus India.
OnePlus 7 Pro comes in at a starting price of Rs. 48,999.
OnePlus has finally launched the much-awaited OnePlus 7 Pro. With it, the company aims to capture the premium smartphone market and give tough competition to the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S10 and the Apple iPhone XR. It is the first OnePlus smartphone to come with a Quad HD+ display and the first phone in the industry to have a high refresh rate on an OLED display panel.
As I was present at the launch event, I was able to spend some time with the device at their experience zone. Here are my first impressions of the smartphone:
OnePlus 7 Pro: Specifications
OnePlus 7 Pro features a 6.67-inch Quad HD+ Fluid AMOLED display with 90Hz refresh rate. It is powered by the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor coupled with an Adreno 640 GPU. The dual-SIM handset packs up to 12GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage. It runs on Oxygen OS based on Android 9.0 Pie operating system. All of this is backed by a 4,000mAh, which also supports the company's new Warp Charge 30 fast charging technology.
As for the optics, the OnePlus 7 Pro features a triple-camera setup on the back consisting of a 48-megapixel primary, a 16-megapixel wide angle and an 8-megapixel telephoto lens. For selfies, there is a 16-megapixel pop-up selfie camera.
OnePlus 7 Pro: First Impressions
As soon as I held the phone for the first time, it gave me the vibe of a Samsung Galaxy S10 and the Huawei Mate 20 Pro. While this could be due to the glass sandwich design and the curved display up front, the OnePlus 7 Pro does have some features that distinguish it from others. For starters, OnePlus has finally shifted to a Quad HD panel and it is one of the first smartphones to feature 90Hz refresh rate on an OLED panel. The panel looks quite vivid and the brightness was also good enough.
OnePlus 7 Pro has a truly bezel-less display.
OnePlus 7 Pro has been launched in three colour variants - Nebula Blue, Mirror Grey and Almond. While the Mirror Grey is too basic for my taste, I was really impressed by the matte finish on the Nebula Blue and the amazing look of the Almond colour variants. The smartphone looks spectacular especially from the front as there is no bezel or notch. The notch has now been traded for a pop-up selfie camera similar to the one seen on the Oppo F11 Pro.
The all-new Nebula Blue colour is the most attractive.
Speaking of cameras, we did manage to take a few pictures using the OnePlus 7 Pro's cameras and we were definitely impressed. While it is not as great as some of the other smartphones in the auto mode, it does bring a significant improvement over its predecessor. We will need to take the phone out in the real world to test out its camera capabilities more thoroughly.
Apart from that, I also had my fingerprint setup on one of the units and I was really impressed. The speed and reliability of the fingerprint scanner have been vastly improved when compared to the OnePlus 6T. Further, the company has also put up a new vibration motor, which feels way better than any of the previous OnePlus smartphones and the device now also has haptic feedback, which makes it feel much more like other premium smartphones.
In the first few minutes I had with the device, I was really impressed. However, we will need to spend some more time with the phone to know about its flaws.
Disclaimer: The author is currently in Bengaluru on the invite of OnePlus India.
