Sony promises patch for QuadRooter exploit

Quadrooter is the latest Android exploit to make the headlines, and many consumers are anxious for a fix. Although theoretically every Qualcomm powered phone features the flaw, it turns out that the problem might not really be threatening many Android devices at all. Even so, some manufactures are rightly keen to patch up the issue just to be safe, and Sony has now committed itself to rolling out a fix to its customers.

Sony has stated that it is already working on a patch that will address the problem, and also hinted that the update will be delivered as part of its regular software maintenance plans. In other words, just keep updating your devices when a notification comes through. Here's the full quote from Sony:

"Sony Mobile takes the security and privacy of customer data very seriously. We are aware of the 'Quadrooter' vulnerability and are working to make the security patches available within normal and regular software maintenance, both directly to open-market devices and via our carrier partners, so timings can vary by region and/or operator. Consumers are recommended to continuously upgrade their phone software in order to optimize performance of their Xperia™ smartphone. Users can take steps to protect themselves by only downloading trusted applications from reputable application stores."

Unfortunately the statement doesn't give us any sort of time table, nor a list of which devices will receive a patch and which won't. Given that carriers will also be responsible for distributing update to some devices, many consumers are likely to be waiting a while for a fix. Still, at least we know that Sony is planning a solution.

Read more: Quadrooter: the latest Android security flaw62

In the meantime, Sony reminds users to stick to download apps from legitimate stores, such as Google Play, in order to ensure they're safe from QuadRooter.

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The new Gear VR pre-orders are now live on Amazon

If you've got a hankering for the new Gear VR with USB Type-C connection, you can pre-order one on Amazon right now for $99.99. Even if you have an existing Samsung Galaxy device with microUSB connection, the fancy new Gear VR is backwards compatible via an included adapter.

See also: Samsung Galaxy Note 7 hands on165

The Gear VR officially launches on August 19 alongside the new Galaxy Note 7, but if you're only in the market for anew VR headset you can sign up via the button below. Besides the nice new midnight blue color, the new Gear VR is more comfortable to wear during long-haul VR sessions. You'll also get a slightly wider field of view (from 96 to 110 degrees), a redesigned touchpad and additional home button.

If you haven't pulled the trigger on a Gear VR headset yet and want to get in on the first wave of Gear VR-C inventory, then you might want to hit that pre-order button now. As Samsung has noted in both South Korea and North America, pre-order demand has been higher than expected.

PRE-ORDER GEAR VR

Will you be buying a new Gear VR? What's your favorite VR title so far?

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Note 7 delayed in Malaysia, Netherlands, Russia, Ukraine, and maybe more

Samsung's new Galaxy Note 7 looks to be off to a very strong start, if pre-order figures from South Korea, Canada, and elsewhere are to be believed. However, this better than expected demand looks to be having a knock-on effects in some countries, as release dates are now being pushed back.

So far, Samsung Mobile Netherlands has officially confirmed via Twitter that the release of the Note 7 has been delayed from September 2nd to September 9th in the country, following "unexpected high demand". The launch in Russia and Ukraine has also apparently been pushed back from September 2nd to even further away September 16th and 30th launch dates. Again citing "unprecedented demand" as the main cause.

See also: (Update: huge demand in Canada too) Galaxy Note 7 breaks South Korean pre-order record66

It isn't just Europe that is hit by the stock shortage, a similar announcement has appeared in Asia too. In Malaysia, Samsung's Vice President has issued a letter explaining that the regional launch will be pushed back from August 19th to some unspecified date in September. This ambiguous move will certainly disappoint eager local customers even more than a week or two's delay. Fortunately, it looks like pre-orders places between the 8th and 10th of August will still be honored within the original launch window.

Samsung's letter being distributed to Malaysian media.

There' no indication that Samsung's isn't going to be able to fulfil Galaxy Note 7 pre-orders in the US, South Korea, or any of its other major markets yet, but we'll keep an eye out. Quite possibly, Samsung is pushing back launches in some areas in order to ensure supply for its largest and most profitable markets. While a lack of availability is surely going to disappoint some consumers, Samsung is probably happily surprised by this surge in demand for the Note 7.

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OnePlus 3 exchange offer in India can get you a discount of up to 100%

Taking a leaf out of the multitude of exchange offers available for Indian smartphone buyers across sales on Amazon India, Flipkart, and other e-commerce platforms, Chinese upstart OnePlus has also jumped on the exchange bandwagon. The company has announced an upgrade program which will allow you to turn in your old smartphone for the newly-launched OnePlus 3 and get a discount of as much as 100%.

With the OnePlus 3, the Chinese smartphone maker has certainly come a long way since the launch of their first smartphone, the OnePlus One, back in 2014. Its powerful features like the massive 6GB RAM, Snapdragon 820 processor, 64GB ROM, and the quick charging 'Dash Charge' technology ensure that the OnePlus 3 still gets to give other more expensive flagships a run for their money.

It's now also much easier to get your hands on the OnePlus 3 because you no longer need an invite, unlike in the case of its predecessors. After being recently launched in India, the OnePlus 3 became available for purchase exclusively on Amazon India where it currently sells for Rs 27,999 (~$420).

If paying a midrange price for a flagship device still doesn't appeal to you, OnePlus is now sweetening the deal by offering an exchange program so that you can swap your old smartphone and upgrade to the new OnePlus 3. Starting today, you can return any old smartphone and get a discount of up to 100% of the value of OnePlus 3. The exact amount of the cashback will depend upon the condition of your old smartphone, which will be evaluated and approved by the company's program partner, Cashify.

If you want to upgrade to the OnePlus 3 using the exchange offer, you'll first need to visit Cashify's webpage to check the replacement value of your old smartphone. Next, you'll have to purchase the OnePlus 3 from Amazon India and take down the order ID. Finally, you can accept the T&C on Amazon India, after which you'll be redirected to the Cashify page where you'll have to input key details of your old smartphone, check your pin code serviceability, and confirm the buyback price and pickup time for your device.

A Cashify representative will then visit you at your submitted address, and pay for your old smartphone after examining the condition of the device. The upgrade offer is available in selected Indian cities of Delhi, Noida, Gurgaon, Pune, Faridabad, Bangalore, Ghaziabad, Hyderabad, Secunderabad, Mumbai, Chennai, Jaipur, Chandigarh, Kolkata, Lucknow, and Ahmedabad.

OnePlus 3 videos

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  OnePlus 3 Review!

The exchange offer could be a sign that OnePlus is feeling the heat from other Chinese manufacturers in the Indian market, with budget-conscious Indian consumers warming up to smartphones from OEMs like Xiaomi, Lenovo, OPPO, Vivo, Huawei, Gionee, and LeEco. Even as Chinese smartphone companies slug it out in the Indian market by throwing in more offers and discounts, Indian consumers are obviously happy to get a bigger bang for their buck.

Do you plan to exchange your old smartphone and upgrade to the new OnePlus 3? Let us know in the comments below!

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Galaxy Note 7 variant with 6GB RAM/128GB storage confirmed for China

We finally have an official confirmation from Samsung that puts an end to all those rumors you have been hearing about a new top-end variant of the just-launched Galaxy Note 7. The head of Samsung Mobile, Koh Dong-jin, has confirmed that a Galaxy Note 7 variant with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of on-board storage does exist. Don't get your hopes up too high just yet though, because that variant will be China-specific and is unlikely to see daylight in other markets.

While for 4 GB of RAM is more than enough for even the heaviest of multi-taskersl, other manufacturers like OnePlus and LeEco are already offering 6GB of RAM in their flagship smartphones. Since Samsung is usually the OEM credited with upping the ante, everyone did expect the company to follow suit with the Galaxy Note 7. The good news is that they have, but with China the intended market, Galaxy Note fans around the world may be disappointed.

New listings on TENAA (China's version of the US FCC) and Geekbench that surfaced just after the launch pointed to a Galaxy Note 7 variant with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage, and when speaking to The Korea Herald  Koh Dong-jin said, that it was true they were rolling out a device with 128 gigabyte built-in memory in China, because of Chinese companies aggressively doing marketing with high-capacity memory.

It may seem difficult to understand the logic behind introducing a new variant of the Note 7 with higher memory and storage specifically for China, but it does make sense, when you consider the dynamics of the Chinese smartphone market. For one, local Chinese brands are offering smartphones with higher RAM and bigger storage capacity, with devices like the OnePlus 3, LeEco Le Max 2, and the Vivo Xplay 5 Elite, all available in the 6GB/128GB configuration. There's little doubt that Samsung is feeling the pressure to keep pace with the spec wars if it has to maintain its reputation in the Chinese market as a manufacturer of high-end devices.

Before going ahead though, Samsung has said that it would first consult with carriers in different regions to avoid disappointing fans in its home market of South Korea where the Note 7 has already achieved record pre-orders.

The Galaxy Note 7 already sells at a premium price of over $800, and the extra memory and storage of the new variant would make it even pricier, though Samsung has not provided any price indications. Would you be satisfied with the memory and storage that the current Galaxy Note 7 has to offer, or upgrade to the 6GB/128GB storage variant if it ever makes its way into your market? Let us know in the comments below!

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It’s still possible to bypass Factory Reset Protection on Samsung phones

You may recall a while back when a guy by the name of RootJunky managed to bypass Factory Reset Protection (FRP) on Samsung and LG phones. Well, he's at it again, this time discovering a new method for bypassing FRP on the recent crop of Galaxy phones including the S6 line, S7 range, the Galaxy Note 5 and even the brand new Note 7.

See also: Lollipop's Factory Reset Protection to make thieves' life harder17

As you probably recall, FRP was a security measure introduced by Google with Android 5.0 Lollipop. Basically, FRP stops someone from stealing your phone and simply factory resetting it by requiring the old username and password associated with the device to be entered before it will successfully boot up again. But as RootJunky has shown on multiple occasions and across multiple devices (including Nexuses), the protection is not foolproof.

The privilege escalation steps involved in this new workaround are rather circuitous – even more so than previous methods – but successfully render FRP useless on a device with the feature enabled. The new method involves connecting to a Wi-Fi network, tethering the device to a computer, installing a program to fake a call to the phone, creating a contact and opting to scan a business card.

Then, using the Galaxy Apps store to install a file manager and then a special app created by RootJunky that serves as a shortcut to the google sign in screen. Once there, he simply creates a new account, reboots and FRP is successfully bypassed, allowing the new user account to set up the device fresh without requiring the old account information to be entered.

The privilege escalation steps involved in this new workaround are rather circuitous, but successfully render FRP useless.

RootJunky admittedly demonstrates a method that could be used by sketchy types to bypass Google's security on a stolen phone. But it is also massively useful for anyone that has inadvertently bought a second-hand device with FRP enabled and no way to access previous account information. Of course, Samsung and Google will likely be patching the method soon. They should probably just hire this guy while they're at it.

Do you use FRP? Is Android security a mess?

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Google fined $6.75 million for pre-installing apps in Russia

A while back, you may remember that some government bodies, including the EU Commission and Russia's Federal Anti-monopoly Service (FAS), were not too pleased with the number of apps that Google requires manufacturers to install on their Android devices. Well the FAS has now slapped the tech giant with a fine for these practises, adding up to a total of $6.75 million (468 million rubles).

That might not seem like a lot of cash for one of the world's biggest tech companies, but it's a worrying sign that government agencies are becoming increasingly hostile to the dominant position of the Android mobile operating system. Android accounts for 74 percent of all mobile devices in Russia, according to Statista, and some local rivals are feeling the squeeze as a result.

The fine came about after rival Russian search engine Yandex complained to the FAS. The complaint alleged that requiring manufacturers to install Search, Maps, and other services as part of Google's Play Store package gave the business an unfair advantage over alternative services. The FAS agreed and Google was given one month to unbundle its apps from phones back in October 2015, but hasn't complied. Google attempted to defend itself by stating that it recuperates the costs of providing Android for free through advertising revenue generated by its other services.

See also: EU anti-trust commissioner repeats old mantra that Google is stifling innovation47

Google isn't the only technology company in the FAS' sights. The antitrust body has recently opened up a new investigation into Apple over alleged price fixing of its iPhone 6s and 6s Plus. Google looks like its going to have to defend itself against these charges more frequently in the future, as the European Commission has also issued formal antitrust charges against the company for pretty much the same reasons.

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