POCO F2 Pro, Redmi Note 9, Motorola One Fusion+, and Samsung Galaxy A21s forums are now open

In spite of the global outbreak of COVID-19, we have witnessed several smartphone launches globally for different price ranges. Smartphone brands including Xiaomi, Motorola, Samsung have launched multiple devices in the last couple of months. We’re now opening up dedicated XDA Forums for POCO F2 Pro, Redmi Note 9, Motorola One Fusion+, and Samsung Galaxy A21s to spur discussion and third-party development for these devices.

POCO F2 Pro

POCO F2 Pro is the long-awaited true successor to the revered flagship killer – POCO/Pocophone F1. The POCO F2 Pro, announced last month, is powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 865 chipset. A rebranded Redmi K30 Pro, the POCO F2 Pro comes with 64MP quad cameras, up to 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, and a notchless AMOLED display complemented by a pop-up selfie camera.

POCO F2 Pro (Redmi K30 Pro) XDA Forums

The POCO F2 Pro starts at €499 in Europe and is a fairly powerful and compelling device for this price.

Redmi Note 9

After launching the Redmi Note 9 Pro (Note 9S) and the Note 9 Pro Max in March, Xiaomi launched the global variant of the Note 9 Pro on the last day of April 2020. At the same event, Redmi Note 9 with a MediaTek Helio G85, 48MP quad cameras, and a hole-punch display was launched for a starting price of $199.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 9 XDA Forums

Being a budget device from Xiaomi’s uber-popular Redmi Note series, the Note 9 is expected to be received well.

Motorola One Fusion+

The latest device under the Motorola One branding is the new Motorola One Fusion+. It comes with a 6.5-inch notchless Full HD display, a pop-up selfie camera, Snapdragon 730 mobile platform (Snapdragon 730G on the Indian variant), and a 5000mAh battery for a fairly attractive price of about $225 (Europe prices yet to be revealed).

Motorola One Fusion+ XDA Forums
Buy Moto One Fusion+ on Flipkart

This seems like Motorola’s most well-rounded phone in several years and although it comes with stock Android, we hope to see a lot of custom development given the value the phone offers.

Samsung Galaxy A21s

Samsung Galaxy A21s was unveiled last month followed by a launch in India last week. It is a mid-range device from Samsung with a 48MP quad-camera setup, hole-punch display, Samsung’s Exynos 850 chipset, and a 5000mAh battery for a starting price of about $215.

Samsung Galaxy A21s XDA Forums

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Amazfit Stratos 3 with integrated GPS, Wi-Fi and music storage launched in India for ₹13,999 (~$185)

Back in August 2019, Huami launched three smartwatches in China. Of these, the Amazfit X stood out for its futuristic design, while the Amazfit GTS stood out for being a cheaper lookalike (but not quite) of the Apple Watch. The Amazfit “Smart Sports Watch 3” flew under the radar, with its name and branding lost in translation, and its features under-appreciated in the presence of other headlining products. Now, this device is getting another chance at making its impact, this time in the Indian market, as Huami has launched the Amazfit Stratos 3 smartwatch in India.

Amazfit Stratos 3: Specifications

Specifications	Amazfit Stratos 3
Case Details	48.6mm diameter x 13.4mm thickness 40.4g Stainless steel and zirconia ceramic bezel Reinforced plastic bottom Stainless steel buttons
Strap	120mm (long) 75mm (short) 22mm width Silicone material
Display	1.34″ MIP Transflective TFT LCD (round) 320 x 320 resolution Corning Gorilla Glass 3
Connectivity	Bluetooth 4.2 + BLE 5.0 Wi-Fi 2.4GHz 802.11 b/g/n
Sensors	BioTracker PPG optical sensor 6-axis acceleration sensor 3-axis geomagnetic sensor Air pressure sensor
Multiple Positioning	Three Modes: GPS + GLONASS GPS + GALILEO GPS + BEIDOU
Water Resistance	5 ATM ( up to 50m depth)
Battery and Charging	300 mAh Smart Mode: 7-day battery life Ultra Endurance Mode: 14-day battery life USB magnetic charging stand, pogo pin connection
Compatibility	Android 5.0+ iOS 10.0+ With the Amazfit App

The Amazfit Stratos 3 looks unapologetically like a sports watch. Unlike the Amazfit GTR and Amazfit GTS, the highlight of the device is not the display, but the ability to be smarter than the other two. For instance, the Stratos 3 comes with integrated GNSS solutions, meaning you don’t need to stay connected to your smartphone for GPS and route tracking. Further, you also get Wi-Fi connectivity and 2GB of internal storage for storing music, and you can connect the watch with Bluetooth earphones. The net result of this combination is that you can effectively use the smartwatch for your workouts without needing to have your phone around. For me, this fixes the issue of needing to lug around a bulky smartphone on a run, as music and GPS tracking is now taken care of by the watch itself. Note that there is no app integration or cellular connectivity, so your music needs to be stored locally as .mp3 files on the smartwatch.

Of course, the Amazfit Stratos 3 can also track exercises with up to 80 sports modes and continuous heart rate monitoring. There are buttons for navigating the interface, in case you find the touchscreen interaction cumbersome during exercise. Another highlight feature is the Ultra Endurance Mode which will pause certain other functions and still let the smartwatch track heart rate and exercises for up to 14 days, effectively doubling the battery life.

Pricing and Availability

The Amazfit Stratos 3 will be available for purchase in India starting today, 8 PM IST, on Amazfit India as well as on Flipkart. The product will cost ₹13,999 (~$185). While the smartwatch is more expensive than the Amazfit GTS and GTR, it does have the added smarts to justify the increase.

Buy the Amazfit Stratos 3 from Flipkart

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New Google Maps features revealed: Better Uber fare estimates, connections to public transit route options, and more

Google Maps is one of Google’s flagship services, having served countless users over the years. Features such as Live View AR navigation, new transit features such as crowdedness predictions, assisted public transit routes, and more — all work together to make Google Maps the de-facto navigation solution for so many users. While the use of Maps has fallen off these past months as people try and stay indoors because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Google continues to improve the app, both in the context of its utility within the pandemic and outside of it. Now, several new in-development features have been spotted on their way to a public release and rollout.

Prolific reverse engineer Ms. Jane Manchun Wong has shared some upcoming features to Google Maps. First up, Google is working to improve fare estimates from ride services by sharing route information with them. The in-development feature currently appears to be limited to Uber, but one can presume that other popular services in the region may also be supported at launch. There’s also a toggle present, so one can select which services they are comfortable with for their route data.

Google Maps is working on an option to “Get more accurate fares” from ride services by sharing route information to them pic.twitter.com/BGh0eCtjoI

— Jane Manchun Wong (@wongmjane) June 20, 2020

Further, deeper integrations have been spotted for bike-sharing service “Bay Wheels”, which will show up as an option for directions, soon.

Google Maps is working on deeper integrations for bike-sharing service “Bay Wheels”, providing it as an option for directions pic.twitter.com/guzgQ2cneq

— Jane Manchun Wong (@wongmjane) June 20, 2020

Next, route options will also see some improvements. Travelers often need to jump modes of transport, especially for daily commutes since the best available public transit service may not be within walking distance. So, route options will get a few different combinations that should aid in planning a journey through various modes for the first and last-mile connectivity.

Google Maps is working on route options with “Connections to Public Transit”, such as:

– Car + transit
– Bicycle + transit
– Auto rickshaw
– Ride service
– Motorcycle + transit pic.twitter.com/hLlCZJG7Av

— Jane Manchun Wong (@wongmjane) June 20, 2020

While all of these upcoming features focus on making transit easier, Maps is also working on changing the discovery experience for points of interest. Place cards are getting a design refresh that will integrate the photographs of the place within the card, instead of the photos appearing behind the card as they do right now.

Google Maps is working on a new place card design where the Photos became part of the card pic.twitter.com/LyS8wU9oIh

— Jane Manchun Wong (@wongmjane) June 20, 2020

All of these features are currently in development. There is no word on when they will roll out publicly, but we expect them to land sooner rather than later.

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Google Photos prepares disabling backups for messaging apps due to COVID-19, video autoplay settings, and setting a profile photo

Google Photos is one of the most convenient apps for managing images and galleries. Besides letting you gather all of your images from different devices in one place, Photos also uses Google’s machine learning insights to suggest which pictures can be deleted to free up space on local as well as cloud storage. Now, Google might be working on two new features; one to restrict help unwanted media from crowding up your Google Drive storage, and another to prevent motion photos and videos from auto-playing.

Media from messaging apps like WhatsApp can take up a lot of storage on your phone as well as on cloud storage if you’ve enabled automatic back and sync on Google Photos. With Google Photos version 4.53, the company is testing the ability to automatically disable backup and sync for media in folders linked to messaging apps. In a teardown of the said version of the app, we found the following reference to the feature:

<string name="photos_backup_settings_disablefolderbackup_promo_message">"People are sharing more photos &amp; videos than ever, due to COVID-19. In an effort to conserve internet resources, backup &amp; sync has been turned off for messaging apps. &lt;a href=help:>Learn more&lt;/a>You can change this any time in Settings."</string>

As per the description of the feature, its intent is to limit internet usage as many people are sharing more photos on messaging apps than usual while staying at home due to COVID-19. Users will be able to reactivate the automatic backup and syncing of folders for messaging apps if they wish to in Settings.

Besides this, some more additions in the app’s code point towards an option to disable autoplay for motion photos and videos when you’re scrolling through the main timeline in the app. The autoplay feature was added to the app last year in July but may have not received well by users.

The following strings hint that users will soon be able to selectively choose which items to autoplay and which ones to not:

<string name="photos_photoadapteritem_videoplayerbehavior_settings_impl_motion_photos_toggle_title">Motion photos</string>
<string name="photos_photoadapteritem_videoplayerbehavior_settings_impl_page_description">Choose what items will automatically play in your photo grid. Recommended for a more seamless experience in the app.</string>
<string name="photos_photoadapteritem_videoplayerbehavior_settings_impl_subtitle">Manage automatic playback in your photo grid</string>
<string name="photos_photoadapteritem_videoplayerbehavior_settings_impl_title">Photo grid playback</string>
<string name="photos_photoadapteritem_videoplayerbehavior_settings_impl_videos_toggle_title">Videos</string>

Lastly, you might soon be able to set your Google profile picture from within the Photos app. Renowned reverse engineering expert Jane Manchun Wong discovered and demoed the feature, as can be seen below in her tweet.

Google Photos is working on the ability to set a photo as the Google Account’s profile picture pic.twitter.com/ROEqALiY1J

— Jane Manchun Wong (@wongmjane) June 20, 2020

Google Photos (Free, Google Play) →

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Here are Android 11’s new emojis that you can install right now [Root]

Unicode 13 was announced earlier this year, bringing along 62 new emojis (117, if you count the variations separately) to devices. While their inclusion may not seem like a big deal on the surface, these graphical assets have become an integral part of expression on the internet and through our devices. They add emotions, intentions, and character to mere words. And the frequent addition of newer emojis is testimony to their importance in modern-day communication and expression. It should then be no surprise to learn that the 62 emojis added in Unicode 13 were added to the Android 11 Beta 1. You can install Android 11 Beta 1 on supported devices to access these emojis. But there is also an easier way to install and experience these emojis on your existing software, presuming you have root.

XDA Senior Member RKBD, known for his Gboard themes, has obtained the font file containing the new emojis from an unreleased Android 11 build. This font file has been packaged into a Magisk Module, that users with Magisk installed can simply flash to replace their existing emojis. For most Android devices, the module replaces the “NotoColorEmoji.ttf” file in /system/fonts. On Samsung devices, the module replaces the “SamsungColorEmoji.ttf” file at the same spot.

One thing to keep in mind is that the emoji style is visible on your device. Several apps like Facebook, WhatsApp, Telegram, Discord, and others are using their own styles and have not included the new emojis yet. If the platform does not include support for the new emojis, they will not be rendered properly on the receiver’s end. So do keep that in mind before you send out U+1F972 to everyone. But now that installing the new ones has become significantly easier, we should see wider proliferation across ecosystems. Just a matter of time for Gboard to integrate the new ones.

Download new Android 11 emojis from the XDA Forum Thread

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[Update: New Narzo 10A variant] Realme introduces youth-centric Narzo series with Narzo 10 and 10A

Update 1 (6/22/20 @ 01:40 AM ET): Realme has launched a new 4GB + 64GB variant of the Narzo 10A for ₹9,999 (~$130). The original Realme Narzo 10/10A launch story from May 11, 2020 remains unchanged.

Realme recently completed two years as an independent brand. Since its spin-off from OPPO, the company has aggressively launched new devices every month and this has allowed it to break its way into the top five smartphone brands in India. The company’s objective, however, is to be a tech lifestyle brand and this is why it is launching a new smartphone series for Gen-Z in India. The new Realme Narzo series includes two new phones – Narzo 10 and 10A – powered by MediaTek G series chipsets and focus on photography.

Buy in India: Realme Narzo 10A (starting ₹ 8,499) || Realme Narzo 10 (₹ 11,999)

While Realme was supposed to launch these devices in March, the launch was delayed due to the COVID-19 lockdown in India. Both of these devices are rebranded versions of previously launched Realme devices with certain aesthetic changes.

Realme Narzo 10

The Realme Narzo 10 is the superior of the two models launching today. It is, in fact, a rebranded Realme 6i, which has already been launched in Europe. The phone is powered by the MediaTek Helio G80 chipset with a 4GB LPDDR4X RAM. It comes with a 128GB eMMC storage which can be further expanded with a microSD card for which the Realme Narzo 10 has a dedicated slot.

The Narzo 10 features a 6.5-inch HD+ display with Gorilla Glass on top. Realme did not specify the version of the Gorilla Glass protection. The back of the Realme Narzo 10 is made of polycarbonate with a satiny finish identical to the Realme X Master Edition. The phone comes in two colors called, That White and That Green.

When it comes to the cameras, the Realme Narzo 10 features a quad camera setup on the back comprising a 48MP primary sensor, an 8MP ultrawide sensor, a 2MP depth sensor, and a 2MP macro camera. On the front, there’s a 16MP selfie camera.

In terms of the battery capacity, the Narzo 10 comes with a 5,000mAh battery along with support for 18W fast charging via the USB-C port.

In terms of software, the phone is running the company’s custom skin Realme UI which is based on Android 10.

Realme Narzo 10A

The younger sibling, Narzo 10A, also comes with a 6.5-inch HD+ display with Gorilla Glass 3 on top. This one is the rebranded version of the global variant of the Realme C3, which differs from the Indian Realme C3 (gaming review) and was launched in Thailand back in February and then globally in March. Realme has made changes to the back design of the SKU and the Realme Narzo 10A comes with a scratch-resistant polycarbonate body with a large Realme logo. The Realme Narzo 10A comes in two color variants – So White and So Blue.

The Narzo 10A features triple cameras including a 12MP primary camera, 2MP macro camera, and a 2MP depth sensor. On the front, there’s a 5MP selfie camera.

The phone comes with MediaTek Helio G70 chipset with 3GB RAM and 32GB storage. It features a 5,000mAh battery but you may be limited to 10W charging via the microUSB port.

On the software front, the Realme Narzo 10A will also be running on Realme UI based on Android 10.

Realme Narzo 10 and Narzo 10A Specifications

Specification	Narzo 10	Narzo 10A
Dimension & Weight	164.4 x 75.4 x 9 mm 199g	164.4 x 75.0 x 8.95 mm 195g
Display	6.5″ IPS LCD 1600 x 720 Gorilla Glass	6.5″ IPS LCD 1600 x 720 Gorilla Glass 3
Security	Rear fingerprint sensor Software-based face recognition	Rear fingerprint sensor Software-based face recognition
System-on-Chip	MediaTek Helio G80 Mali-G52 GPU	MediaTek Helio G70 Mali-G52 GPU
RAM	4GB LPDD4X	3GB/4GB LPDDR4X
Storage	128GB eMMC	32GB/64GB eMMC
Battery & Charging	5,000 mAh 18W Fast Wired Charging	5,000 mAh 10W charging
Rear Camera	48MP Wide, f/1.8, 6P lens 8MP Ultra-Wide, 119°,  f/2.25 2MP f/2.4 Macro Camera 2MP f/2.4 Depth Sensor	12MP Wide, f/1.8 2MP f/2.4 Macro Camera 2MP f/2.4 Depth Sensor
Front Camera	16MP	5MP
Software Version	Realme UI based on Android 10	Realme UI based on Android 10
Connectivity	4G LTE 2.4GHz Wi-Fi USB Type-C Bluetooth v5.0	4G LTE 2.4GHz Wi-Fi microUSB Bluetooth v5.0
Colors	That White, That Green	So White, So Blue

Pricing & Availability

The Realme Narzo 10 is priced at ₹11,999 (~$160) in India while the Narzo 10A will be sold for ₹8,499 (~$115). The former goes on the first sale on May 18th while the 10A will be available for the first sale on May 22nd. Both of these devices will be available via Flipkart and Realme’s own online store.

Buy in India: Realme Narzo 10A (starting ₹ 8,499) || Realme Narzo 10 (₹ 11,999)

---

Update: New Realme 10A variant

Realme has announced a new 4GB+64GB variant of the Realme Narzo 10A that will be priced at ₹9,999 (~$130). It will be available alongside Realme Narzo 10 and the previously launched Narzo 10A via Flipkart and realme.com.

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How to enable hidden Pixel themes on Sony Xperia phones running Android 10

The Pixel Themes app lets you customize the icon shape, font, accent color, etc. on Google Pixel phones running Android 10. We discovered the existence of the app shortly after Google pushed the second Android Q beta, and managed to get an early preview of its capabilities about a month before the public appearance. As the name suggests, the app is not intended for non-Pixel devices, but the underlying overlays that it toggles can still be found on other devices. Although neither the full-fledged Pixel Themes app nor the AOSP ThemePicker is present on Sony Xperia phones running Android 10, the company has left in a lot of the icon shape and accent color overlays that can be activated via the cmd overlay shell command.

While tinkering with his brand-new Sony Xperia 1 II, XDA Recognized Developer niaboc79 discovered the existence of these overlays. Given the fact that Google designed the overlay-based theming mechanism on top of Sony’s Overlay Manager Service (OMS), the inclusion of the packages in the Android 10 firmware of Xperia phones isn’t very surprising. There is no user-facing app to control these overlays, though, so users have to manually toggle them via ADB shell. For example, you can easily change the accent color using the following command:

cmd overlay enable com.android.theme.color.<COLOR_NAME>

where COLOR_NAME can be “purple”, “black”, “cinnamon”, “green”, “ocean”, “orchid”, or “space”.

Here are the three basic commands you should know before playing with the overlays. You can enter them using Android Debug Bridge (ADB) after connecting your Sony Xperia smartphone to a PC/Mac with USB Debugging enabled.

• To see a list of available overlays, enter the following command:

  cmd overlay list

• To enable an overlay, enter the following:

  cmd overlay enable [package.name.here]

• To disable an overlay, enter the following:

  cmd overlay disable [package.name.here]

Best of all, the trick should work on older Xperia devices as well, provided they received an official Android 10 update from Sony. This means that owners of the Xperia 1/5, Xperia XZ2/XZ3, and Xperia 10/10 Plus can also perform the same command line theming magic on their phones.

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