The gap between Google’s publication of a monthly Android security bulletin and the update rolling out can vary, but Samsung is typically way ahead of the curve when it comes to this. In keeping up with that trend, the Korean OEM has already started seeding the August 2022 patches to its flagship Galaxy S22 series. The Galaxy S21 and Galaxy S20 have also picked up the August patches in select regions.
Galaxy S22
The version number of the new software is S90xBXXU2AVG6, and it is meant for the Exynos 2200-powered European variants of the Galaxy S22, S22 Plus, and the S22 Ultra. The size of the incremental update package is a little more than 400MB, which indicates that there are several under-the-hood changes besides the new SPL. The new build is currently rolling out in Russia, Georgia, and several European countries.
Notably, the release doesn’t increment the underlying bootloader version. As a result, power users still have the option to perform a downgrade and revert back to an older build with bootloader version 2 — even after installing this update on their Galaxy S22 units.
In a similar manner, the Exynos 2100-powered global edition of the Galaxy S21 is now receiving the August 2022 patches. The software version is G99xBXXU5CVGB, and it is up for grabs in Germany.
For the Galaxy S20, the August 2022 security update is rolling out in the form of software version G98xxXXUEFVG5. Once again, the Exynos variants (both the LTE and 5G models) are the first to get the new release, that too starting with Germany.
The update should be making its way to more markets in the coming days. In case you haven’t received the OTA notification on your phone so far, you can manually check for it by heading over the Software update section in the Settings app.
Keep in mind that Samsung will roll out any new update in a staged fashion, and it may be a while before it shows up on your device. You can, however, skip the waiting queue and install the new release right now by flashing it manually on your Galaxy device.
While it appears that Samsung has “beaten” Google at their own game, Google always waits until the bulletin is public at the start of the month before rolling out the update. Furthermore, the Mountain View tech giant also shares the details of the security bulletin with OEMs like Samsung a month or more in advance to give them time to merge the changes. Still, Samsung has been very good at rolling out security patches in a timely manner, and pushing them out even before the new month begins is something that the company has been doing for a while now.
PS5 owners that use a 1440p gaming display will be pleased to hear about this latest Beta. Sony is pushing out the latest bits to “invited participants in selected countries” and support for 1440p resolutions is the headline feature. The PS5 already supports 4K displays and 1080p displays, the new option allows output at the step between.
The key here is that your display has to support a 1440p output for it to work. In the case of a number of TVs, this won’t be the case, but gaming monitors will probably be more friendly towards it. Sony has included a new Test 1440p Output option in the Video Output settings menu that will help you figure out if it works for you.
Here’s Sony’s full breakdown of how it works:
The PS5 beta introduces support for 1440p HDMI video output, enabling players to choose an additional visual setting on compatible PC monitors and TVs.
If the game you’re playing supports 1440p rendering you can experience native 1440p output on your display.
Or, if you’re playing a game with a higher native resolution like 4K, then you may benefit from improved anti-aliasing through supersampling down to 1440p output.
You can check if your HDMI device is compatible by selecting “Test 1440p Output” under “Screen and Video” options within system settings.
What else is new in the PS5 Beta
Next up is the new Gamelist feature which seems to be a little like the groups feature found on Xbox. It’s basically a way to group together games into easy-to-browse sections, versus going through your whole library.
Each Gamelist can house 100 games and each PS5 can handle up to 15 Gamelists. This is particularly useful because it also includes streaming titles from PlayStation Plus. These can be mixed together with games you own physically and digitally on the same Gamelist.
There’s also a new feature that allows you to compare stereo audio and 3D audio. It’s not a huge change, but 3D audio isn’t for everyone and Sony is going to make it easier to choose between the two.
The features list doesn’t stop there, though. Here’s a quick breakdown of what else can be found in the latest beta.
Easier access to in-progress activities.
Request party members to turn on Share Screen to watch their gameplay.
Joinable game notifications for party members.
View new friends’ profiles.
Sending voice notes and stickers in Game Base.
The supported countries for the latest beta are the U.S., Canada, Japan, the U.K., Germany, and France. If you’re in one of those locations and not already part of the program, hit the PS5 beta sign-up page for a chance to test out these features before anyone else.
The PS5 is still hard to get hold of but it's undeniably one of the best ways to game right now. Sony's library continues to impress and has some big hitters on the way.
Just in time for summer, Google Maps is getting a new update that will bring aerial views of the world’s most popular destinations, improved biking directions with enhanced details about routes, and a safer way to stay connected with friends and family.
Aerial View
Google Maps will now have close to 100 aerial views of popular landmark destinations. That means you’ll be able to check out Tokyo Tower ahead of your trip to Japan or even Lady Liberty before going to New York. While this looks good, Google has plans to make it even better with “immersion view,” but still has some work to do before it can reach that goal. If you want to check out the new aerial view, be sure to head to the photo section to see the detailed landmark.
Aerial view, enhanced bike routing, and location sharing notifications.
Biking directions
In addition to popular landmarks, biking directions are getting upgraded, with Google Maps set to introduce more details like elevation, car traffic, stairs, and whether you’ll be biking on an incline or decline. The new update will also show you whether you will bike on a main or local road. Google has curated this data using AI, city data, trusted partners, and feedback from Google Maps users. This seems like perfect timing considering rising gas prices have forced some to commute using bikes. But be sure to check the air quality before heading out.
Share with people who care
The final update coming to Google Maps is notification settings for friends and family. By sharing your location, friends and family will now be able to see when you’ve arrived and when you’ve left a location. This feature will only be available to those who have shared a location with a specific user. The invited user will then be able to set check-in and check-out points. Users can choose to stop sharing their location whenever they choose. This is to ensure that privacy is still maintained.
Aerial views and landmarks and location-sharing notifications are rolling out globally to Google Maps on iOS, Android, and PC. If your city currently has cycling directions, the improved cycling route update should roll out in the coming weeks.
The auction of the 5G spectrum in India is currently underway, meaning we’re now one step closer to finally putting our 5G smartphones to use. We already have a definitive guide explaining everything you need to know about 5G networks in detail. That’s the only explainer you need to read if you want to refresh your memory around 5G and get down to the nitty-gritty of spectrums, network bands, carriers, and more. In this article, we’re going to give you a low down of different spectrums and 5G bands that will be used by different carriers in India.
Which 5G spectrum bands are being auctioned in India?
A total of ten bands and over 72,000 MHz of the spectrum are up for grabs in the ongoing auction. The bands on auction are — 600 MHz, 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2300 MHz, 2500 MHz, 3.3 GHz, and 26 GHz. It’s safe to say that most consumers in India will only experience sub-6GHz 5G i.e low and mid-band networks. These are ideal to cover a large distance with 5G service. Spectrum in the 1GHz to 6GHz range is considered mid-band, and it is considered ideal for most carriers as it can carry plenty of data over significant distances. As such, the n78 5G band (3300-3800MHz) will remain one of the crucial bands to be supported by smartphones to take advantage of the 5G network in most places.
The low band spectrum (<1GHz) is ideal to cover a large area with 5G service that ranges in speed between 30 to 250 megabits per second (Mbps). The millimeter wave falls under the third bucket of the spectrum. mmWave is very high on the spectrum chart with 24GHz band and higher frequency. The high-band tower delivers high-speed internet but the spectrum itself is quite limited, so signals can’t travel very far. In most cases, these signals travel less than a mile and are also susceptible to interference from buildings and trees, so you often end up needing a clear line of sight from your phone to the tower. The exact details of the bids aren’t out yet as the auction is still underway, but it appears that bidders have largely focused on the mid-band spectrum for optimal coverage.
The following table lists the specified frequency bands and the corresponding frequency range to be deployed in the country:
5G bands
Frequency range
n1
2100MHz
n3
1800MHz
n5
800MHz
n8
900MHz
n28
700MHz
n40
2300MHz
n41
2500MHz
n71
600MHz
n77
3300-4200MHz
n78
3300-3800MHz
n257
26.5GHz-29.5GHz
n258
26GHz(24.25-27.5 GHz)
n260
37.0GHz-40.0GHz
n261
27.5GHz-28.35GHz
Will your smartphone connect to 5G in India?
We expect most carriers to rely on non-standalone (NSA) 5G mode as these networks are dependent on 4G base stations and 4G core networks. This, however, doesn’t affect smartphones and 5G devices as long as they support the corresponding 5G bands. A lot of the 5G phones sold in India support all the 5G bands that are being auctioned in the country right now. It remains to be seen which carriers have purchased spectrums in different circles, but all the mid-bands seem to be popular in key circles including Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Tamil Nadu, Haryana & UP, and more.
A lot of the modern 5G smartphones being sold in the country including the new Redmi K50i support both NSA and SA 5G bands including n1, n3, n5, n7, n8, n20, n28A, n38, n40, n41, n77, and n78. This also includes flagships like the iPhone 13 which supports n1, n2, n3, n5, n7, n8, n12, n20, n25, n28, n30, n38, n40, n41, n48, n66, n77, n78, and n79 bands. You may have some trouble using 5G on phones that are imported from other countries as the supported 5G bands tend to vary based on the region. It is recommended that you check the specifications sheet to see if your device supports the 5G bands that are being auctioned in the country.
When can we expect 5G rollout in India?
With the 5G spectrum auctions underway, the carriers are expected to roll out the 5G services in the country later this year at the latest. According to Information technology minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, a total of four rounds of 5G auction has been completed in the country so far. He noted that the entire process is expected to be completed by August 14 and the 5G services in the country will start by September-October this year.
Four rounds of 5G auction has been completed. So far it is expected that the revenue generated is around Rs 1,45,000 crores. We have to complete this process by August 14 & 5G service in the country will start by September-October: Information Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw pic.twitter.com/JDTTrigBvD
We’ll learn more about the supported 5G bands by each carrier in the country as we move closer to the official rollout of the 5G services. We’ll continue to update this space with more relevant info, so keep your eyes peeled.
August is but days away and for Google Stadia fans that means a new slate of Pro games. Next month will see another six titles joining Stadia Pro, including Saints Row: The Third – Remastered. This is of course just weeks out from the hotly anticipated launch of the Saints Row reboot which will be launching day and date on Stadia.
It’s a pretty solid lineup for August’s Pro games, so here’s exactly what you’ll be getting.
This includes Calico, which launches on Stadia on August 1 and goes straight into Pro. It’s described as “a day-in-the-life community sim game where you are given an important and adorable task: rebuild the town’s cat café and fill it with cute and cuddly creatures!” It’s not quite Stray, but hey, it’s a fun game with cats, and who doesn’t love cats?
17 new click-to-play trials
In addition to the new Pro games, Stadia is also getting a new release on July 28 in the form of The Forgotten City. This mystery adventure game has won a number of awards, even being nominated for two BAFTAs. Set in an open world Ancient Roman world, fans of great storytelling won’t want to miss out on this one.
Stadia’s click-to-play trial catalog is getting a significant boost, too. 17 new titles have been added, taking the total now to over 100. It shows one of the strongest sides of cloud gaming, the ability to simply click a button in a web browser or an app and be playing a game in seconds. Added to the list this time round are a range of titles, including a three-hour trial of Farming Simulator 22.
It’s been a strong few weeks for Stadia. Besides all of this, the Saints Row reboot is set to launch in late August, FIFA 23 is on the way, and it’s a good time to be a cloud gamer.
AMD has released the latest version of its AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition suite, which includes the latest drivers for its CPUs and GPUs. There are a few changes with version 22.7.1, but one of the most noteworthy is the launch of AMD Noise Suppression.
As the name indicates, this is a tool for cutting out background noise from your microphone, so you’re heard more clearly while streaming or during video calls and meetings. The feature uses a deep learning algorithm to determine what’s considered background noise and tries to eliminate it while allowing your voice to still be heard. This is very similar in nature to Nvidia’s RTX Voice tool, which later expanded into RTX Broadcast, including other AI-powered features for video and audio.
The most notable difference is that AMD Noise Suppression is included directly in the AMD Software suite, so you don’t need a separate app to enable it, you can just update to the latest version of the AMD drivers. You can find this in the settings section of the AMD Software suite, under the Audio &Video sub-category. The feature does have minimum requirements, though – you’ll need an AMD Ryzen 5000 series processor or newer, or Radeon RX 6000 series GPUs or newer.
Beyond the new Noise Suppression feature, the latest AMD drivers are the first to officially support Windows 11 version 22H2, the upcoming major update for Windows 11, which adds and brings back a lot of features. It also includes some updates to the Agility SDK and new Vulkan extensions.
There are also new optimizations for Radeon Boost, with support for Variable Rate Shading in games like Valorant and Elden Ring, resulting in better performance in those titles. Additionally, Radeon Super Resolution is now supported on discrete Radeon RX 5000 and 6000 series GPUs on laptops that also have AMD Ryzen processors with hybrid graphics. Radeon Super Resolution is an in-driver version of FidelityFX Super Resolution, and it allows almost any game to be rendered at a lower resolution and then upscaled to the native resolution of the display using machine learning algorithms, and until now, it was only available on systems that only have discrete graphics, or notebooks with a MUX switch that can turn off the integrated graphics entirely. Now, that’s no longer a requirement.
While Google typically doesn’t showcase new hardware at its I/O developer conference, the company didn’t stick to the norm this year. During this year’s I/O keynote, Google announced the Pixel 6a and Pixel Buds Pro, and gave us our first look at the Pixel 7 series, Pixel Watch, and Pixel Tablet. While Google did not reveal much about the upcoming devices at the time, a new leak has revealed the camera specifications for the Pixel 7 series and the Pixel tablet.
Developer Kuba Wojciechowski spotted the camera hardware configurations for the Pixel 7, Pixel 7 Pro, and the Pixel Tablet while digging through the GS101 Camera Hardware Abstraction Layer (HAL) from Android 13 Beta 4. Although Google had obfuscated the sensor names in the code, Wojciechowski managed to match the sensor IDs in the code to actual camera hardware using various resources.
First of all – Pixel 7 (Pro) – C10/P10:
Both devices use the same GN1 primary sensor and IMX381 UW as before. The front camera is now the same on both – Samsung’s 3J1 – a 11MP sensor with dual pixel, which should improve the quality and allow for semi-secure face authentication.
As a result, we now know that the Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro will feature a 50MP Samsung ISOCELL GN1 primary sensor and a 12MP Sony IMX381 ultra-wide sensor, like the Pixel 6 series. Both phones will also pack an 11MP Samsung ISOCELL 3J1 sensor over on the front with Dual Pixel autofocus.
In addition, Wojciechowski reveals that the Pixel 7 Pro will sport a 48MP Samsung ISOCELL GM1 telephoto sensor instead of the 48MP Sony IMX586 sensor found on the Pixel 6 Pro. While this change seems strange, Wojciechowski speculates that Google might have opted for Samsung’s ISOCELL GM1 sensor over the Sony IMX586 because “sensor image processing is vastly different between vendors and might lead to less consistent results, if mixed.”
Next device is the Pixel Tablet – T6:
According to the code, it has two sensors, both of them IMX355 – the same 8MP sensor as the selfie cam on regular Pixel 6. It’s probably used as a good cost saving measure.
Along with the Pixel 7 series, Wojciechowski also spotted camera hardware configurations for the upcoming Pixel Tablet. According to the code, the tablet will feature two 8MP Sony IMX355 sensors. For the unaware, the selfie camera on the Pixel 6 utilizes the same sensor.
What do you think of the camera hardware on the Pixel 7, Pixel 7 Pro, and Pixel Tablet? Let us know in the comments section below.
Shortly after Google launched the Pixel 6 series last year, we saw reports about users facing issues with the fingerprint scanner on both models. While some claimed that the fingerprint scanner on the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro felt sluggish compared to other flagships, others said that it just refused to work sometimes. Google tried to address the issue with various software updates for the devices, but it achieved limited success. The company seems to have made some changes to avoid this issue on the recently released Pixel 6a, but new reports suggest that the Pixel 6a’s fingerprint scanner has another major problem.
In our review of the Pixel 6a, we found that the in-display fingerprint scanner on the device wasn’t much faster than the one on the flagship models. But that doesn’t seem to be the only fingerprint scanner issue on the affordable handset. Recent videos from Geekyranjit and Beebom (via Android Police) highlight that the Pixel 6a can be unlocked with an unregistered fingerprint. The former shows the device unlocking with an unregistered thumb, while the latter presents evidence of multiple users unlocking the device without registering their fingerprints.
This new issue is far more concerning than the slow fingerprint scanner on Google’s flagship models. But, since the Pixel 6a is yet to make its way to users, we haven’t seen many reports about the issue. Google has not released a statement on the matter so far, but we expect the company to release a software update with a fix before the Pixel 6a reaches early buyers.
Note that we were not able to replicate the issue on our Pixel 6a review unit and the folks at Android Police did not face the issue either. This leads us to believe that the problem could be limited to regional variants of the device. However, we can’t confirm that at the moment.
For most, a charger is something that just comes with your device, and you never really think about it again. But for others, it’s an opportunity to explore a world of third-party accessories that could rival or surpass first-party offerings. Anker is a company that has built quite a reputation, selling mobile charging solutions online and even in retail stores. Today, the firm announced a series of new GaN chargers under its GaNPrime banner.
GaNPrime will be an extension of what the company has been building over the past few years, combining GaN, with proprietary Anker technology. The combination will make way for safer, more sustainable, and faster-charging solutions. GaNPrime will achieve the previous points by focusing on energy conservation, the ability to channel power where needed, when it’s needed, improved active heat monitoring, and compact charger designs.
GaN or Gallium Nitride is a chemical compound used since the 1990s and has more recently found its way into mobile chargers. The compound offers many benefits, mainly its ability to operate at higher temperatures. Anker has harnessed this technology, delivering chargers that can far surpass the abilities of your standard charger. While the additional charging power is welcome, some might not be as keen on the price, with the base Anker GaN charger costing far more than your stock charger. Although it might be a steep price, it does have many advantages, especially for those with multiple devices.
If you are interested in Anker’s new GaNPrime mobile charging solutions, you can hit the links above to order. Anker’s more powerful GaNPrime charging solutions like the 120W Anker 737 charger, 733 Power Bank, and 150W 747 charger are not currently available for pre-order from Amazon. They will begin shipping sometime in Q3 2022. The pre-order links will be added when they become available. You can also head to the source link to order directly from Anker.
OnePlus is currently in the process of shaping up its OxygenOS 13 skin based on Android 13. At the same time, the company is also trying to keep its older devices up to date with the latest security patches, but the amount of delay is quite intimidating. Case in point: While we’re about a week away from moving into August, OnePlus has now started rolling out the July 2022 security patches through the stable channel, starting with the OnePlus Nord N10 5G.
OxygenOS 11.0.7 for the OnePlus Nord N10 5G’s global model is currently rolling out to users. According to screenshots shared by users over on the OnePlus Community Forums, a similar update is also available for the T-Mobile variant of the same device. Note that the new build is still based on the Android 11 base, as the device is eligible for only one major OS update.
Here’s the full changelog for the update:
System
[Updated] Android security patch to 2022.07
OnePlus is yet to announce the rollout on its forums, so it might be a while before the OTA notification pops up on your device. If you don’t wish to wait, you can download the incremental update package from the link provided below and flash the update manually. OnePlus typically releases software updates in a phased manner in order to catch any bugs in the release ahead of the wider rollout. Therefore, we don’t recommend installing the update manually if you’re using your OnePlus Nord N10 5G as your daily driver.
Download OxygenOS 11.0.7 for the OnePlus Nord N10 5G
As mentioned above, we currently have access to the incremental update package from OxygenOS 11.0.6 for the global model only. We’ll update this post with links to the full OTA package as soon as it becomes available.
Google has slowly been updating its apps to offer a better experience on Android tablets and other large-screen devices. Since the Android 12L debut, the company has updated several apps in its portfolio with new features and optimizations to make better use of the extra screen real estate. Now, it has detailed some upcoming changes for Google Drive, Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Keep, which will improve usability on Android tablets and other large-screen devices.
In a recent blog post, Google highlighted all of the large-screen optimizations that will roll out to Google Drive, Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Keep in the coming weeks. The first, and most important, change coming to Google’s Workspace apps is drag and drop support. The feature will let users easily drag text and images from apps like Chrome or Sheets and drop it into an existing document or spreadsheet.
Drag and drop from Google Sheets to Google Docs
The new drag and drop functionality will also let users quickly upload files to Google Drive and add a link to Drive files in Google Keep. Furthermore, the functionality will also let users insert images saved in Keep notes or Google Photos into other apps.
Along with the drag and drop functionality, Google will also bring a new side-by-side layout for Google Drive. The new layout will let users open two Drive windows side-by-side. To use this feature, users will have to select the three-dot menu on any Drive file and tap on the new “Open in new window” option.
Side-by-side view in Google Drive
Lastly, Google is also bringing keyboard shortcut support to Drive, Docs, and Slides. Thanks to this, users will be able to perform functions like select, cut, copy, paste, undo, and redo using familiar keyboard shortcuts. Note that Google had already released cut, copy, and paste keyboard shortcut support to Google Drive in May this year.
All the aforementioned changes will roll out to Google Workspace and personal Google account users over the next few weeks. Unfortunately, Google has not shared a definite timeline for the rollout.
Intel has announced the first major customer partnership for its foundry services, that being MediaTek. MediaTek is mostly known for developing smartphone processors based on Arm technology, as well as chips for other smart edge devices, and the partnership should enable the company to have a more resilient supply chain across the world, specifically in the United States and Europe. In turn, this should make it easier for more devices to use MediaTek processors without supply constraints.
Intel launched its Foundry Services (IFS) last year as part of a new strategy, which sees the company opening up its manufacturing facilities to other companies, with MediaTek being one of the first to jump on board. Intel typically only designs x86 processors, but the foundry services can build Arm processors too.
“As one of the world’s leading fabless chip designers powering more than 2 billion devices a year, MediaTek is a terrific partner for IFS as we enter our next phase of growth,” said IFS President Randhir Thakur. “We have the right combination of advanced process technology and geographically diverse capacity to help MediaTek deliver the next billion connected devices across a range of applications.”
Intel has been making major investments in order to strengthen its manufacturing capabilities. The company recently finalized the expansion of its manufacturing facility in Oregon, and it announced an investment of $20 billion to build another facility in Licking County, Ohio. Plus, over in Europe, over $36 billion are being invested to expand existing facilities and build new ones, all with the goal of making Intel a manufacturing powerhouse, not just for its own processors, but for third parties as well.
This is all part of the company’s IDM 2.0 strategy, which not only sees Intel becoming a major foundry partner for other chip designers, but also the opposite – Intel relying on other foundries for the manufacturing of certain chips. This should allow for a more open and fluid ecosystem and hopefully result in greater manufacturing capacity across the industry.
OnePlus is gearing up to launch a new flagship smartphone early next month. The company recently announced that the upcoming OnePlus 10T will be unveiled at an event in New York City on August 3. In addition, it confirmed that the device would pack Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 flagship chipset. While we expect to learn all about the OnePlus 10T at the upcoming event, OnePlus has already started sharing teasers revealing a few more details about the device.
Hope Liu, Chief Designer at OnePlus, has shared official renders of the OnePlus 10T in a recent interview with The Verge. The renders give us an early look at the device, confirming that it will follow the same design language as the OnePlus 10 Pro.
As you can see in the attached images, the OnePlus 10T features a square camera island that overflows over the left edge of the device. It features four circular cutouts, with three housing camera sensors and the fourth packing an LED flash. The OnePlus 10T features minimal branding on the back panel, a volume rocker on the left edge, and a power button on the right edge. Surprisingly, it doesn’t feature any Hasselblad branding, and Liu confirms that that’s a trade-off OnePlus had to make to offer the device at a specific, likely more affordable, price point.
While the OnePlus 10T won’t feature cameras tuned by Hasselblad, its primary camera will only be a minor step down from the 48MP Sony IMX789 sensor on the Pro model. Liu says that the device will pack a 50MP Sony IMX766 sensor instead, which will offer support for shooting in 10-bit color, “improved HDR photography,” and OnePlus’ night photography mode.
The renders also confirm that the OnePlus 10T won’t feature the iconic alert slider. Liu says that OnePlus had to remove the slider to make room for “high wattage charging, a large battery capacity, and better antenna signal.” Although Liu doesn’t reveal the fast charging capabilities of the OnePlus 10T, previous leaks suggest that the device could feature 150W wired fast charging support. Liu partially confirms this theory by revealing that the OnePlus 10T packs two “charging pumps.” In contrast, the OnePlus 10 Pro’s 80W wired fast charging solution only used one charging pump.
Furthermore, Liu confirms that the OnePlus 10T will pack a 6.7-inch display. The renders suggest it would be a flat panel, unlike the OnePlus 10 Pro. However, we don’t have any information on its resolution and refresh rate at the moment. Lastly, the renders reveal that the device will come in two colorways — matte black and glossy green.
We expect OnePlus to share more details about the OnePlus 10T in the days leading up to the launch. We’ll make sure to let you know as soon as we learn more.
Smartphone companies that are on top of their software update game are far and few between. Luckily, Google Pixel users not only get major updates before everyone, they can also test out the upcoming version of Android through a public beta program. It has been some time since Google released Android 13 through the beta channel for eligible Pixel devices and while the update has received generally favorable reviews, we can’t forget the fact that it is still just a beta quality software, not a daily driver like Android 12.
If you have accidentally installed a developer preview/beta build and you have been wondering how to downgrade your Google Pixel back to the stable Android release, then this guide is for you.
Downgrading your Google Pixel smartphone to stable Android version
While the developer preview and beta builds are usually meant to help app developers find and solve problems with newer Android releases, anyone can flash them on a compatible device. If you have not already and want to check it out, here is how you can install Android 13 on your Google Pixel phone. Nonetheless, one should also learn about the downgrading process from the beta to the stable channel for the sake of usability. We all can deal with some bugs better than others, and if an update brings one of the bugs you can’t deal with, you might look for the option of going back.
Luckily, restoring your Google Pixel device to a stable version of Android is actually quite easy. You can either ask Google to send you a special OTA to perform the transition or manually flash the stable build on your device yourself. The only catch is that reverting back the OS to an older version requires it to be reset to factory settings during the process, which wipes all your data and settings from the device. So make sure to back up your personal data before going to the next step.
Downgrading from developer preview/beta channel to the stable version usually requires a full data wipe.
You can downgrade your Google Pixel phone with or without using a computer.
Reverting back to the beta channel doesn’t need a data wipe.
Method 1: Leave the beta program
This is the direct opposite of enrolling in Google’s Android developer preview/beta initiative. All you need to do is detach the target Pixel device from the beta program. Google will then issue a specially crafted OTA package that will erase the beta build and install the latest stable Android version on your device. Notably, this process doesn’t require an unlocked bootloader.
Click or tap View your eligible devices to see the beta-enrolled Pixel devices.
In case you can’t find your device, make sure that you are signed into the Google account linked to device(s) you wish to rollback.
Select the Opt-out option for the listed devices you need to remove from the beta program.
The target device will receive a new update within 24 hours. You can also navigate to Settings > System > System update > Check for update on your phone to see if the update is available.
Once the OTA arrives, install it.
That’s it!
As mentioned earlier, the OTA will wipe out all data on the device during the flashing process. Although you don’t need an unlocked bootloader to start with, it is always better to keep the bootloader unlocked when you’re dealing with beta builds.
With the release of Android 12, Google started offering “a window of opportunity” to unenroll from the beta without wiping a beta participant’s device:
When you apply the stable release update for the version you’re beta testing, you can opt out without a data wipe for a limited time until you apply the next beta update.
The server-side switching will only be offered at the completion of a beta cycle. Since this is quite unclear how much time will be given before a new preview/beta build starts up, this is a bit more unreliable than manual enrollment cancellation.
Method 2: Manual downgrade
If you don’t want to wait for Google to issue the rollback update, then you have the option to flash the latest stable Android build yourself. However, you will need a PC/Mac/Chromebook to execute the flashing operation. The target device also needs to bootloader unlocked.
Using Android Flash Tool
Google’s Android Flash Tool (as its name would suggest) is essentially a flasher-in-a-browser-tab. It streamlines the whole process of flashing Pixel devices by wrapping everything into a web app, thanks to the WebUSB API. There is no need to download images, configure CLI platform tools, install drivers, and execute the flashing commands — Android Flash Tool can take care of them all.
Make sure you have a browser on your PC/Mac/Chromebook that is compliant with the WebUSB UPI. Chromium-based browsers, such as Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge, are recommended.
Click on the Get Started button. Next, allow the web-based flash tool to communicate with the target device through ADB by accepting the popup that says Grant Android Flash Tool access to its ADB keys in order for it to communicate to connected devices.
Click Add new device.
Select the target Pixel device from the list and click Connect.
On your Pixel’s screen, select Always allow from this computer and click OK to accept the USB debugging connection.
Select the connected device in your browser.
Select the build that says “Back to Public” from the list. You can then select options, such as wiping the device, relocking the bootloader, or force flashing all partitions.
Click on Install build to start the process.
After the flashing process completes, disconnect the device from the USB cable.
If everything goes right, then your Pixel device will reboot to the latest stable build of Android. It should now start the device setup process, allowing you to sign up and enjoy the stable Android software.
Using Fastboot
In case you prefer to take full control of the flashing operation, then opt for the Fastboot flashing method.
Optionally, relock the bootloader of your Pixel phone:
After restoring the stable Android firmware, reboot the device to the bootloader mode using ADB:
adb reboot bootloader
Execute the following command to relock the bootloader:
fastboot flashing lock
On your Pixel phone, scroll to the “lock the bootloader” option using the volume keys, and accept the option using the power button.
The phone will reboot and once again wipes itself.
That’s what you need to know as far as how to downgrade your Google Pixel smartphone from beta/developer preview to the stable Android version. Are you going to opt for a rollback? Let us know your reasons in the comment section below!
If you’re looking for a gaming laptop that’s powerful, but is also thin and light, look no further than the Alienware x15 R2. With a new quad-fan thermal design, it weighs five pounds and it’s under two thirds of an inch thin, and yet it still comes with up to a Core i9 and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti.
There are a few flaws, one of which is that it does get hot enough to affect performance after a time at heavy load. Also, while I love the design, I don’t like the way the ports are laid out, as they’re hard to see on the back with the lighting around the perimeter.
But I do love that design. This laptop feels modern and unique, something that I like to see in a gaming laptop. If you want portability to go with your gaming, this seems like the best choice.
The Alienware x15 R2 is available now, and it starts at $2,149.99
The Alienware x15 R2 is available now, and you can find it at the usual places. Obviously, Dell.com is offering it, and it’s also available on Best Buy and Amazon. However, Best Buy and Amazon both have a much more limited SKU selection than Dell does.
It starts at $2,149.99, and that will get you an Intel Core i7-12700H, 16GB LPDDR5 memory, a 512GB SSD, a 15.6-inch FHD 165Hz display, and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060. While the base model is fairly expensive, it’s still pretty beefy, which is nice. Other gaming laptops will start at 8GB RAM, 256GB storage, and a GTX 1660, but not this one.
The model that Dell sent me packs a Core i7, 32GB LPSSR5, a 2TB SSD, a 15.6-inch QHD 240Hz display, and an RTX 3070 Ti. That model, priced out on Dell.com, is $2,909.99.
Alienware x15 R2 specs
Processor
12th Gen Intel Core i7-12700H (24 MB cache, 14 cores, 20 threads, up to 4.70 GHz Turbo)
1 USB 3.2 Gen 1 port with PowerShare
1 USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C port with DisplayPort and Power Delivery
1 Thunderbolt 4 port with DisplayPort and Power Delivery
1 Universal Audio Jack
1 HDMI 2.1 port
1 power-adapter port
1 microSD-card slot
Alienware HD (1280×720 resolution) camera with dual-array microphones and Windows Hello IR support
Audio
Stereo speakers, stereo tweeter 2 W x 2 = 4 W total
AlienFX Lighting Zones
Programmable with up to 16.8 million distinct colors
Input
Alienware xSeries keyboard with per-key RGB LED AlienFX lighting
Includes N-key rollover technology
Multi-touch gesture Premium Precision glass touchpad with integrated scrolling
Connectivity
Killer Wi-Fi 6 (6E* Pre-certified) AX1675 802.11ax 2×2 Wireless LAN and Bluetooth 5.2
Case and color
Lunar Light with High Endurance Clear Coat designed for stain resistance
OS
Windows 11 Home
Price
$2,909.99
These are the specs for the unit that Dell sent me. The base model is $2,149.99.
Design: It’s under two-thirds of an inch thin
The Alienware x15 is designed to be thin and light
It has RGB lighting framed around the rear ports
Like most of the Alienware lineup, the x15 R2 has a unique and futuristic feel about it. It comes in a color called Lunar Light, with an off-white lid and black sides. There’s a stenciled ’15’ on the bottom-right corner of the lid, and you’ll find an Alienware logo right in the middle that lights up with RGB lighting.
It’s also designed with thermals in mind. This thing is 0.63 inches thin and it weighs just five pounds, and that’s all while not sacrificing power. Under the hood, it actually has four fans, using a dual opposite outlet design, so the air is passing through the internals to through the chassis. There’s also a new Element 31 thermal compound that’s meant to provide a 25% boost in thermal resistance.
The Legend 2.0 design looks sleek, futuristic, an unique.
So far, we’ve talked about how it’s stylish, how it’s thin and light, and how it’s designed for innovative thermals, and that leaves two things: ports and lighting. As you can imagine, there’s lots of RGB lighting on this gaming laptop – although it’s not overkill, which is nice – but the ports matter too.
Aside from the power jack, which is on the right, and the headphone jack, which is on the left, all of the ports are on the back. There’s just one USB Type-A port, there are two USB Type-C ports (one of which is Thunderbolt), HDMI 2.1, and a microSD card slot. The whole panel is bordered by an RGB light strip that wraps around it.
Honestly, I hate all of it. The RGB lighting is pretty for sure, but functionally, it’s a mess. Let’s go down with the list. Ports on the rear make a lot of sense when you’ve got things plugged in all of the time, such as an external monitor. Most companies do this leave a port or two on the side so you can plug in occasional peripherals like a controller, headset, or something else that you might not use constantly. What I absolutely don’t understand is having the power port on the side. It gets in the way, an issue that wouldn’t exist if the port was on the back.
Moving back to the ports on the rear, that RGB lighting, while pretty, is a problem. One issue with having ports on the back of a laptop is that you have to know where they are. Lenovo solves this by putting labels above the ports. Not only are there no visible labels, but the light makes the ports hard to see. You just have to sort of feel around back there to find the hole that’s shaped like the one you’re looking for.
Other than that, I absolutely love the design. It’s just a pleasure to experience, and having a gaming laptop that’s so thin and light is fantastic.
Display: QHD, 240Hz, and quality
The display is excellent for a gaming laptop
The webcam, unfortunately, is 720p
The 15.6-inch 16:9 display comes in three options. You can get it at 1080p 165Hz, 1440p 240Hz, or 1080p 360Hz. Dell sent me the 1440p 240Hz model, and I really do like it. I feel like 1440p is the sweet spot for a 15.6-inch screen. At this size, you’ll see pixels with 1080p resolution; however, there are two reasons you might still get FHD. One is that it’s in the least expensive model with a 165Hz refresh rate. The other is that it’s in the model with a 360Hz refresh rate. Indeed, many serious gamers might want to sacrifice resolution for frame rate, and that’s totally understandable.
Personally, I like monitors that look pretty, as well as offer that performance you want for gaming. That’s what I’m finding from the screen on this unit, and it’s something that I’ve found to be a rarity in gaming laptops. Gaming laptops typically sacrifice everything in the name of performance and responsiveness, but this is actually a really good display, even if you’re not gaming at all.
From my testing, it supports 100% sRGB, 90% NTSC, 92% Adobe RGB, and 97% P3. Those are really great results, even for a non-gaming laptop. That means that this is an excellent PC for creators that might be doing photo or video editing, at least as far as the display goes.
Brightness maxed out at 417.9, which is solid, although the contrast ratio only maxed out at 860:1, which definitely seems low.
The Alienware x15 has an excellent display for gaming and anything else.
The screen has narrow bezels on three sides, and unfortunately, the webcam is still 720p. If you’re planning to do a lot of streaming, or even if you might use this laptop for video calls, it’s going to be an issue. After all, you probably won’t have separate laptops for gaming and work. It’s just always a shame to see 720p webcams in laptops still. It does, however, have an IR camera for facial recognition, which is awesome. Any kind of biometric authentication seems to never make its way into gaming laptops, so it’s nice to see.
Keyboard: It has all of the RGB lighting
The keyboard comes with per-key RGB lighting
The keyboard uses standard 1.5mm Chiclet-style keys, and that’s fine. It doesn’t feel like it’s designed for typing, so much as gaming, although I am typing this review on it, of course. It feels fine. The big thing to note about the keyboard is the per-key RGB lighting.
Like I said earlier, it really feels like the RGB lighting is just in enough places to feel good about it, but it’s not overkill. There’s the Alienware logo on the lid, the perimeter of the rear ports, and there’s the keyboard. You can control all of this via the Alienware Command Center application, which oddly didn’t come pre-installed. I had to get it from the Microsoft Store.
You can also use Alienware Command Center to make custom power profiles, overclocking the CPU and GPU when you’re playing power-hungry games.
The clickable touchpad is a bit small, and it actually feels undersized for such a large laptop. I’m a big fan of touchpads that make use of all of the available real estate, and this doesn’t really do that. It’s a good touchpad though, and it’s fine.
Performance: It’s crazy powerful for how thin it is
The unit that Dell sent me packs a Core i7-12700H, an RTX 3070 Ti, and 32GB RAM, but it maxes out with a Core i9 and an RTX 3080 Ti
There is a lot of power under the hood of this laptop. And like I said earlier, you can boost the performance even more through Alienware Command Center. I’ll also say that the performance in this laptop is actually better than other similarly specced laptops.
While photo and video editing is fantastic, as you’d expect, I’ll talk about gaming. The main game I played on this unit was Forza Horizon 5 with its new Hot Wheels expansion pack (to be clear, it’s awesome and you should play it). My main issue was sustained performance. Upon launching Forza Horizon 5 for the first time, it suggests extreme graphics, which is no surprise given how powerful this laptop is, and when I first started playing, it was fantastic.
After about a half hour, I ran into significant issues. The game froze and said that it didn’t have the CPU resources to play, a major issue on a gaming laptop. After all, if you’re trying to win, the last thing you want is this kind of disruption. After maybe 30 seconds of a frozen screen, I’d be able to drive again for a short period of time, but once it started, it didn’t stop. By this point, touching any part of the rear section of the laptop is super-clear that this thing is hot.
Powerful performance, and you can still boost it with Alienware Command Center.
There were some workarounds. Like I said, you can boost performance in Alienware Command Center. The other is that you can turn down graphics in the game to a lower setting.
While I could replicate that issue in Forza pretty easily, I didn’t experience it in other games, as I randomly decided to play through all of the campaigns in Halo: The Master Chief Collection again.
The bottom line on performance is that it’s phenomenal, but under heavy load for a period of time, you might have to make some adjustments.
As you can see, it outperforms a similarly specced Lenovo Legion 5i by a bit.
From a CrystalDiskMark test, the Micron 3400 SSD was a bit slower on read speeds than other PCIe 4.0 SSDs that I’ve seen in laptops, and the write speeds were right in the middle. Either way, with PCIe 4.0, you’re really not going to go wrong. It’s way faster than what we’ve seen in the past with PCIe 3.0, and you can look forward to short loading times.
Should you buy the Alienware x15 R2?
The Alienware x15 R2 is a fantastic gaming laptop if you’re looking for something thin and light.
Who should buy the Alienware x15 R2:
Gamers who want power, but are frequently on the go
Gamers that want a laptop with a unique and futuristic design
Who should NOT buy the Alienware x15 R2:
People that want to game on their PC, but won’t be taking their computer on the go much
Anyone that doesn’t need this kind of power
The key benefit to the Alienware x15 R2 is that you get a lot of power that comes in a thin and light package. That means that this laptop is for gaming on the go. If you’re gaming from one place all of the time, you’re probably looking more toward a tower or build.
(@Za_Raczke) 
