European Galaxy Note 7 relaunch bumped up to October 28th

Prospective Galaxy Note 7 owners in Europe weren't given much of a chance to get their hands on the smartphone before it was recalled on September 2nd, but Samsung now states that the phone will go back on sale in the region on October 28th. Just last week, Samsung had estimated that the phone would not land back on the continent until sometime in November, but now seems confident that it will have enough stock to move this date up to just a week behind the US relaunch.

However, this revised October 28th date is "subject to a full completion of the exchange programme", and so could end up being pushed back into November anyway. The company is prioritizing the replacement of old Galaxy Note 7s that may have been afflicted with the battery issue before issuing new stock to store shelves.  Samsung has already delayed the resale date of new Galaxy Note 7 handsets in South Korea because the company didn't believe that it could complete the recall in time.

Despite the limited availability of the Note 7 in Europe before the recall, Samsung states that only 57 percent of European customers have returned their phones so far. Although return rates should increase as consumers receive the mandatory OTA update this week, which limits battery capacity to 60 percent and flashes up an implacable notification to return the phone every time it is charged.

"Every Note7 customer in Europe has received a series of safety messages, from Samsung asking them to exchange, and a software update rolling out across Europe to all existing Note7 devices has reset the maximum battery charge of existing Note7 devices to 60%," – Samsung

See also: Here's how the Note 7 mandatory battery limiting update will work129

Samsung expects that European returns will be completed by early October. However, the company is having mixed success in cajoling customers into returning their phones in other markets. Just over 60 percent of recalled Note 7 units have been returned in the US and South Korea so far. Meanwhile, more than 70 percent of Canadians have sent their phone back and the recall rate is above 80 percent in Singapore.

If you are planning to pick up a Galaxy Note 7 when it returns to European store shelves on October 28th, be sure to look for the little black sticker on the box and the green battery icon to be sure that it's safe to use.

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OnePlus is finally rolling out Marshmallow to the OnePlus X

OnePlus is done with small phones. The company's Carl Pei confirmed it during a recent AMA on Reddit, saying that it's simply not possible to fit a big enough battery into a 5-inch device.

While there won't be a sequel to the 5-inch OnePlus X, OnePlus is still working on keeping it up to date. Today the company kicked off the rollout of the first official Marshmallow build for the OnePlus X, Oxygen OS 3.1.2.

The update comes roughly a month after the release of the Marshmallow-based Oxygen OS 3.1 "community build" for OnePlus X. While that was a public beta, we're now talking about the official, stable update that's going to roll out to all users.

In addition to Marshmallow, the update to Oxygen OS 3.1.2 includes tweaks and improvements to the user interface, new apps, and the October security patch from Google. The mention of the October patch is curious, though it wouldn't be the first time we're seeing monthly patches in the wild before their "official" release by Google.

Among the biggest changes in the update are new icon packs, customizations to the Google search bar, and a redesigned wallpaper picker. Apps in Shelf UX, OnePlus' home screen modification, can now be easily rearranged or removed with a long press. The Alert Slider settings has gained more customization options, and the update brings Marshmallow's new app permissions model.

See also: Android 6.0 Marshmallow updates roundup – September 21, 2016153

Following the update, users will get to play with two new apps: OnePlus Music Player and OnePlus Gallery.

OnePlus warned that the update will take several days to complete and only a small number of users will receive their OTA notifications today.

Late as it comes, the Marshmallow update for the OnePlus X is welcome, but should OnePlus X owners expect any other updates? The chances for Nougat are slim at best, seeing that other devices powered by Snapdragon 801 are not expected to be updated to Android 7.0. When asked directly in the Reddit AMA if the OnePlus X would get any other updates beyond Marshmallow, the OnePlus team failed to provide an answer.

The good news? Nougat is definitely coming to the OnePlus 2, the project's technical lead confirmed.

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Report: Huawei working on a Tizen OS smartwatch

It's been a long time since Huawei launched its first smartwatch, the Watch was announced all the way back at MWC 2015. Since then, the company has been very quiet about its R&D in the wearables market, but a report from China suggests that Huawei is planning to launch a new smartwatch powered not by Android Wear but by Tizen.

Local daily JoongAng Ilbo reports that Huawei has been collaborating with Samsung, which leads the open-source development of Tizen, to bring the Linux-based operating system to the company's next smartwatch. Such a collaboration would be a first for Tizen, which has so far been limited to a range of Samsung's own products, including its range of Gear wearables, smart white goods, and other IoT devices.

Huawei was looking for an OS other than Google's Android as the US firm had not been very collaborative

Apparently, Huawei had been looking for an alternative operating system to Android Wear, after Google had not been very collaborative with the company. OEMs have previously criticized the lack of hardware and software design flexibility with Android Wear, and this was a primary reason for Samsung moving to Tizen for the Gear S2.

Since then, Samsung's Tizen OS has certainly proven itself a capable wearable operating system, especially with the company's impressive Gear S3 smartwatch.

However, Samsung spokesperson Lee Won-ho states that "Samsung has not officially received any request for such collaboration from Huawei yet." So, there's no official collaboration between the two companies at the moment, but the use of the words "officially" and "yet" are at least a little suggestive of some form of talks. Furthermore, there's nothing to stop Huawei from developing a Tizen powered watch on its own. The Tizen platform and code are open-source, and product development wouldn't necessarily require any official collaboration with Samsung.

See also: No new Android Wear watches from Motorola, LG or Huawei this year, report claims31

Unfortunately this rumor can't be confirmed at this stage and comments just earlier in the month, from an unnamed Huawei executive, state that the company is waiting for wearable components to shrink and for processors to gain efficiency before moving forward with a successor to the Huawei Watch. Even if the rumor is true, this smartwatch certainly won't make an appearance until sometime in 2017, at the earliest.

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Le Max 2 price cut to Rs. 17,999 as it heads to Amazon and Snapddeal

The LeEco Le Max 2 officially launched in India back in June and next month the phone will be enjoying a temporary price cut in the country. From October 1st to 6th, the Le Max 2 will see its price fall to Rs. 17,999, down from its Rs. 22,999 launch price and offering customers a saving worth Rs. 5,000.

The temporary price cut will apply to the 4GB RAM / 32GB memory version of the handset. So, the slightly higher end 6GB / 64GB model will remain at its more premium price point. Other than that though, the two versions are the same. The Le Max 2 comes with a 5.7-inch QHD display, Snapdragon 820 processor, 21 megapixel rear camera, 8 megapixel front camera, 3,100mAh battery, and Android 6.0 Marshmallow. The phone is already a rather good deal and will be a steal once the discount kicks in.

LeEco has also confirmed that the Le Max 2 will no longer be an exclusive to LeMall and Flipkart. From next week, the phone will also become available from Amazon India and Snapdeal. This discounted price will be found across all of these retailers, however the deal will be appearing at different retailers over slightly different days, which is going to be a little bit annoying to keep track of.

We have had a great relationship with Flipkart and we are confident that it will only strengthen as we go forward. To ensure that more users have access to our Le Max2, we are delighted to announce our partnership with Amazon India and Snapdeal." – Atul Jain, COO, Smart Electronics Business, LeEco India

LeEco will discount the Le Max 2 to Rs. 17,999 during Flipkart's Big Billion Day, which runs from October 2 to October 6. The phone will also be available at the same price during Amazon's Great Indian Festival sale between October 1 to October 5. Then there's Snapdeal's Unbox Diwali Sale running from October 2 to October 6. If that's not enough to get your head around, LeEco is also holding a flash sale at its LeMall website this Friday, where 2,000 participants will receive a voucher for and additional Rs. 1,000 discount on LeMall purchases made between October 1 to October 6.

Of course, you'll want to know a bit more about the handset before committing to a purchase and there's plenty of time to check out our hands-on time with the Max 2 at the link below.

Read on: LeEco Le 2, Le 2Pro and Le Max 2 hands-on18

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New HERE platform will collect driving data from millions of cars

This post was originally published on our sister site Charged.io, your destination for modern transportation news.

When Nokia sold HERE maps to BMW, Daimler and Volkswagen last year, we doubt they imagined something like the Open Location Platform. In conjunction with the already powerful navigation tool that is now called HERE WeGo, the automotive companies are adding detailed live traffic info to the software.

Coming in 2017, HERE will compete with services like Waze to provide drivers with detailed traffic information. Where Waze generally relies on user input, however, HERE will track things like vehicle location, speeds and even multiple sensors within the car to provide a more accurate perspective of the road conditions ahead.

It is not hard to imagine the power of the HERE Open Location Platform once it is enabled on many cars by these automakers. Instead of simply tracking the location and speed of cars on the road, it can register when the brakes have been activated, indicating a slowdown, or when a vehicle's wipers are running, a good indicator of wet conditions. Obviously, the more cars that are equipped with the service, the more accurate the data can become. There is no word yet how much data will be extrapolated from those simply using the HERE WeGo app on their Android phone.

Navigation today, autonomy tomorrow

There is the long term goal with HERE Open Location Platform to support and lead to more and better assisted driver systems, and even self-driving initiatives. While we wait, any help avoiding a traffic jam on the roads is extremely helpful, so we look forward to seeing where HERE gets to.

be See also: 10 best GPS app and navigation app options for Android108

Have you ever tried HERE WeGo maps, previously just named HERE maps? What is your favorite road navigation and mapping software?

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BlackBerry DTEK60 poses for pictures and passes the FCC

After a leak on the official BlackBerry website last month, we were pretty certain that the DTEK60, or Argon as the phone has been known, would be heading to market soon. The handset is now all but confirmed for launch, having just passed through the FCC in the US and appeared in leaked images in Germany.

The FCC listing doesn't offer much new in the way of specifications, but it does confirm the existence of the handset. It's worth noting that although the listing is for a BBA100­1 model, the WiFi Alliance site confirms that this is the model number for the DTEK60. Previous leaks have given us a pretty good idea about the phone's internal hardware, so here's what you can expect.

• 5.5-inch QHD (2560×1440) display
• 2.15GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor
• 4GB RAM
• 32GB internal storage with microSD card slot
• 21 megapixel rear camera, 8 megapixel front camera
• 3,000mAh battery with Quick Charge 3.0
• Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow

Courtesy of the folks over at Winfuture.de, we also have a selection of press pictures for the BlackBerry DTEK60. Thanks to the images, we can confirm a rear fingerprint scanner, USB Type-C port on the bottom, and a slightly extruding camera lens. The phone is definitely sporting a different appearance to the DTEK50, and looks like a higher end product as a result. If you fancy a closer look, have a gander at the gallery below.

The leak also tips us off about the possible price point and launch date for the next BlackBerry smartphone. The DTEK60 is said to cost around $CAD 700, which is roughly $USD 530 or €475, give or take a percentage for sales taxes and regional price plans. This price would certainly make the smartphone a competitive choice, but this is probably the detail most likely to change before the official launch. The DTEK60 is expected to go on sale in Canada on October 11th and should hit other markets shortly thereafter.

Are you excited about BlackBerry's next smartphone, or is the company no longer on your radar?

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Google Play Music finally goes live in India

The long wait is finally over for Indian users who have been longing to plug themselves into Google Play Music. The music streaming service has just gone live for users in the country, nearly five years after the music store became available in the U.S.

See also: It looks like Google Play Music may be finally coming to India23

It's a wonder that it took so long time for Google to release Play Music in a country where Android subscribers account for majority of the mobile users. But what it lacks in timing, Google compensated with a vast collection of songs including new Bollywood albums like "Indian Ocean". That's on top of international hits and Bollywood tracks from the two last decades.

Tracks costs more in Google Play Music than they do in other music streaming services already available in India such as Apple Music. For example, individual tracks could set you back ₹15 (~$0.23) compared to ₹9 (~$0.13) per song in Apple Music.

Unlike Google Play Music in other countries, however, Play Music in India appears to be lacking support for Play Music All Access, Podcasts and radio. Whether Google plans to roll out these features to Indian shores remains to be seen. Still, users can upload up to 50,000 songs from their own music collection.

Play Music All Access is the premium subscription of the service that lets users gain access to as many songs as they want for $10 per month. As it is not yet available in India, users will need to purchase individual songs, and that might be the biggest challenge that the service will be facing in India.

See also: Apple Music vs Spotify vs Google Play Music94

What do you think of Google Play Music's availability in India, sans Play Music All Access? Share your thoughts in the comments.

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