Tech Nuggets with the Technology

Saturday, March 7, 2020

Nokia 52 becomes Nokia 53, reveals quad cameras, 4000mAh battery in leaked specs

With HMD Global all set to unveil its new Nokia 5G smartphone (Nokia 9.2) on March 19 in London, we’re seeing an increase in the number of Nokia leaks and rumours. The latest leak, reported by NokiaPowerUser, suggests that the company’s new mid-range offering will be called not Nokia 5.2 but instead Nokia 5.3. The leak also suggests that the handset will feature as many as four cameras on its back panel, a large 6.55-inch screen, and a 4000mAh battery. We expect the Nokia 5.3 to be powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 600-series chip.

The leak suggests that the Nokia 5.3, which was previously thought to be the Nokia 5.2, is a dual-SIM mid-range smartphone bearing the model number ‘TA-1234’. Though the leak claims to confirm the change in the handset’s name, it fails to mention why HMD Global is skipping a number. Nonetheless, the Nokia 5.3 is expected to replace the quickly aging Nokia 5.1 that is currently on sale for Rs 8,727. Going by a recent Geekbench listing, it will be powered by either a Snapdragon 660 or Snapdragon 665 chip with up to 6GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage capacity.

The leak not only gives us a glimpse of the new handset but also reveals some key specs. For example, the Nokia 5.3 is expected to feature a large 6.55-inch screen with an aspect ratio of 18.5:9. As is the case with many modern Nokias, the top section of the handset’s screen will house a circular notch for the single 8MP selfie camera. On the back panel, the Nokia 5.3 should pack four camera sensors of varying resolution (16MP + 5MP + 8MP + 8MP). It’s also expected to feature a 4000mAh battery. Colour options include Cyan and Charcoal with the possibility of a third.

The outgoing Nokia 5.1, which was launched in India in mid-2018, features a much smaller 5.5-inch Full HD+ display with fairly thick horizontal bezels. It’s powered by a MediaTek Helio P18 Octa-core chip with up to 3GB of RAM and 32GB of expandable storage capacity. It has a single 16MP camera sensor on the back with phase-detection autofocus and dual-tone flash. On the front, it sports an 8MP selfie unit. The battery inside the handset is a much smaller 2970mAh unit. The Nokia 5.1 runs Android 9 Pie out of the box.

Inline image courtesy: NokiaPowerUser

Note: Cover image depicts Nokia 5.1

https://ift.tt/38zqhN0

Google Pixel 4 Gets More Secure Face Unlock Setting, Doesn't Work Yet

Google has apparently released a new setting for the Google Pixel 4s face unlock, as it appears in the settings. Called "Require eyes to be open", it would only authorise face unlock with the users'... https://ift.tt/2VWflWP

Online classifieds company OLX Brazil, a leading player in Brazil's digital real estate ads, has agreed to buy rival Grupo ZAP for $642M in an all-cash deal (Terje Solsvik/Reuters)

Terje Solsvik / Reuters:
Online classifieds company OLX Brazil, a leading player in Brazil's digital real estate ads, has agreed to buy rival Grupo ZAP for $642M in an all-cash deal — OSLO (Reuters) - Online marketplace OLX Brazil has agreed to buy competitor Grupo ZAP for 2.9 billion reais ($642 million) …

Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra Survives Durability Test in New Video

Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra has been put to test by YouTube channel JerryRigEverything to test its scratch resistance and bendability. https://ift.tt/2TRf6tw

Interview with Vision Fund chief Rajeev Misra, who admits the fund made many investment mistakes and denies he smeared other high-ranking SoftBank executives (Alex Sherman/CNBC)

Alex Sherman / CNBC:
Interview with Vision Fund chief Rajeev Misra, who admits the fund made many investment mistakes and denies he smeared other high-ranking SoftBank executives — - Rajeev Misra, who leads SoftBank's Vision Fund, has largely been quiet as criticism has mounted.

Facebook says it will ban ads for medical face masks

Facebook is temporarily banning advertisements for medical face masks as part of an effort to prevent use of its platform to exploit people's concerns about the new coronavirus. https://ift.tt/38zrYd4 https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

ET GBS: App firms see more adoption from small town India

Wattpad has around three million monthly users in India and stories by some of the most popular India writers that are resonating with Indian audience but also people from around the world. https://ift.tt/2vEc2sY https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

PhonePe says services resumed; now partners ICICI Bank

PhonePe has nowe partnered with India's second largest private sector lender ICICI Bank to act as a payment service provider in place of Yes Bank https://ift.tt/2VW24h8 https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

How North Korean hackers laundered $100M in stolen Bitcoin by using hundreds of automated transactions to "peel" small amounts off the original (Mike Orcutt/MIT Technology Review)

Mike Orcutt / MIT Technology Review:
How North Korean hackers laundered $100M in stolen Bitcoin by using hundreds of automated transactions to “peel” small amounts off the original — Hackers working for Kim Jong-un have become experts at covering their tracks on the Bitcoin blockchain.

Friday, March 6, 2020

Grindr's Chinese Owner Says to Sell Dating App for $608 Million

Chinese gaming company Beijing Kunlun Tech Co said on Friday that it has agreed to sell Grindr, a popular gay dating app it acquired in 2016, for about $608.5 million. https://ift.tt/3cxAVHj

Stanford cancels classes in response to novel coronavirus outbreak

Following on the heels of several major cancellations of events the past few days, including the SXSW conference in Austin and the tech conference SaaStr, Stanford University, which is located in the heart of Silicon Valley in Palo Alto, California, announced late Friday that the school would cancel in-person classes for the final two weeks of the university’s winter quarter in response to the expanding outbreak of novel coronavirus, or COVID-19.

In a statement posted by the university, Stanford’s provost Persis Drell announced that the university would cancel two weeks of classes leading up to the university’s winter quarter exams, and “to the extent feasible” migrate classes to online formats.

In addition, professors are being encouraged by the administration to find ways of delivering functionally equivalent course material through online formats, and all exams for winter quarter are expected to be delivered remotely. The policy takes effect immediately starting with classes this coming Monday, March 9.

Furthermore, the university is canceling its annual Admit Weekend, where newly-admitted prospective freshman visit the palm-lined campus and learn more about the school before making a final decision on where to head for their undergraduate degrees. Tours of the campus have also been canceled.

The university in a separate note today acknowledged that two students are in self-isolation after “possible exposure” to the novel coronavirus. The university emphasized that neither student has affirmatively tested positive for the infection at this time.

The San Francisco Bay Area has seen increasing numbers of potential exposures to the novel coronavirus. Stanford itself has been on the vanguard of responding to the global pandemic, announcing the development of its own test earlier this week to detect the infection.

Apple launches free repairs for iPad Air models made from Mar. 2019-Oct. 2019 affected by the "blank screen issue" that leaves the display permanently disabled (Mikey Campbell/AppleInsider)

Mikey Campbell / AppleInsider:
Apple launches free repairs for iPad Air models made from Mar. 2019-Oct. 2019 affected by the “blank screen issue” that leaves the display permanently disabled — Apple on Friday launched a repair service program for third-generation iPad Air models suffering from a so-called …