Apple just announced that the Apple Online Store is now available in Vietnam.
Vietnam’s Apple Online Store will offers a wide range of Apple products and accessories, with shopping assistance from Apple’s team of experts, no-contact delivery, trade-in program, build-to-order Mac options, and up to 24 months of financing for your Apple device. The Apple Online Store will also offer students a special pricing for their Mac or iPad, and receive discounts on accessories as well as AppleCare+.
The store is available in both Vietnamese and English, allowing customers to order a wide range of Apple products on the web.
It appears that the leaks are true, since Google has officially announced the Pixel Fold – the first foldable phone engineered by the company.
Beyond the 8 seconds teaser video (below), Google did not provide any other details like the specs, availability and price. The company also said that they talk more about the Pixel Fold at Google I/O this May 10th.
It was previously leaked that the Pixel Fold will be a 5.8-inch phone that unfolds into a 7.6-inch tablet, with a Tensor G2 processor that Google developed and a battery that Google claims to last for 24 hours on a single charge, and “the most durable hinge on a foldable.”
vivo Philippines has officially launch the newest members to their vivo V27 Series 5G of smartphones; the vivo V27 Pro, vivo V27 and the vivo V27e.
The vivo V27 Pro which we can consider as the high end among the three is powered by a MediaTek Dimensity 8200 Soc, while the vivo V27 is using MediaTek Dimensity 7200 and the vivo V27e is powered by MediaTek Helio G99.
As for the display; the vivo V27e have the upper hand in this category, even though its 0.16-inch smaller that the 6.78-inch AMOLED display of the V27 Pro and V27, V27e screen supports 120 Hz refresh rate, which is ideal for mobile gaming.
All three phones shares a number of components to each other and depending on your usage, we cannot boxed any of the phone into the high-end, mid or low end phones. But one thing is for sure, vivo made sure that the cameras of all three devices are top notched.
vivo V27e
The triple camera system of the V27 Pro and V27 are composed of a 50 MP OIS f/1.88 for its main camera; a 8 MP wide-angle and a 2 MP macro camera. It also features the Rear Aura Light (Portrait Mode) which detects low light environment and it automatically adds brightness for radiant, delicate complexions. vivo uses Sony IMX766V Sensor with OIS that captures more light to better and sharper images. The front camera for the two smartphones is a 50 MP with autofocus and f/2.45 aperture.
The rear camera of the vivo V27e on the other hand is composed of a 64 MP OIS f/1.79 (main), 2MP bokeh f/2.4 and a 2 MP macro f/2.4, while the front shooter is a 32 MP Fixed focus with f/2.0 aperture.
You can now order your own vivo V27e with a retail price of ₱16,999 on Shopee and online, while the vivo V27 is available for pre-order and is priced at ₱24,999. No word yet on the price and availability of vivo V27 Pro.
GPS, BEIDOU, GLONASS, GALILEO, QZSS, NavIC (V27 Pro and V27 only)
Dimension
164.1 × 74.8 × 7.36 mm
Weight
180g
Battery
4600 mAh with support for 66W FlashCharge
Color
Noble Black, Magic Blue, Flowing Gold, Emerald Green
Price
₱24,999.00
The Aura Portrait Master has arrived! Like a studio in your pocket, the V27e brings its innovate new Aura Light Portrait technology to make your shots glow!
Samsung has officially announced the latest addition to the Galaxy A series, Galaxy A54 5G. The phone is a powerful, stylish and affordable smartphone that delivers a premium experience in a sleek design.
The Galaxy A54 5G features 6.4-inch FHD+ Super AMOLED Display, powered by an octa core Mediatek MT6877V chip and an 6GB Memory with 128GB Storage that is expandable up to 1 TB using the optional microSD card. As for the camera, Samsung is calling the triple rear camera a “pro-grade camera” that’s compose of a 12MP Ultra-Wide Camera, 50MP Main Camera and a 5MP Macro Camera. The front shooter is a 32MP camera a F2.2. The Samsung said that the Galaxy A54 5G is capable of capturing clear images in low light conditions, using Samsung Galaxy’s Nightography and AI features.
Galaxy A54 5G will have a 5,000mAh battery and will be available in Awesome Violet and Awesome Graphite colors, and will receive with up to four generations of OS upgrades and five years of security updates. Galaxy A54 5G will be available for preorder in the U.S. on March 30, with full retail availability for carrier versions starting April 6 for as low as $449.99. No announcement yet if the Samsung Galaxy A54 5G will be available globally.
Here are the specs of the Samsung Galaxy A54 5G;
Galaxy A54 5G
Display
6.4-inch FHD+
Super AMOLED Display
120Hz refresh rate
Vision booster
* Measured diagonally, the screen size is 6.4-inch in the full rectangle and 6.3-inch accounting for the rounded corners. The actual viewable area is less due to the rounded corners and camera hole.
Dimensions & Weight
158.2 x 76.7 x 8.2mm, 202g
Camera
12MP Ultra-Wide Camera
• F2.2, FF
50MP Main Camera
• F1.8, AF, OIS
5MP Macro Camera
• F2.4, FF
32MP Front Camera
• F2.2
AP
Octa-core
Memory
6GB Memory + 128GB Storage
Expandable storage by up to 1 TB with an optional microSD card
*Actual storage capacity available is subject to preloaded software.
*Memory option may vary by market.
*MicroSD card sold separately. Availability of detailed features (such as Memory and Processor) may vary by market and carrier.
Battery
5,000mAh (typical)
*Typical value tested under third-party laboratory condition. Typical value is the estimated average value considering the deviation in battery capacity among the battery samples tested under IEC 61960 standard. Rated (minimum) capacity is 4,905mAh. Actual battery life may vary depending on network environment, usage patterns and other factors.
OS
Android 13
One UI 5.1
* Availability of One UI features, apps and services may vary depending on OS version.
Realme has officially announced the realme 10 Pro 5G Coca-Cola Edition. The phone is basically the realme 10 Pro 5G with Coca-Cola theme; from the box set, icons, notifications and ringtones. Realme even included a note with realme & Coca-Cola DIY Stickers, a custom-made SIM Ejector pin inspired by the classic Coca-Cola crown, and a Limited Number Card. The phone will only available this summer and is limited to just 589 units.
The realme 10 Pro 5G Coca-Cola Edition will feature a 120Hz Boundless FHD+ Display, a dual rear camera that’s composed of 108MP ProLight Camera and a 2MP Portrait Camera, powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 5G processor. It’s powered by a 5000mAh Battery with 33W SUPERVOOC Fast Charging, it also comes with 8GB RAM + 128GB storage.
realme 10 Pro 5G Coca-Cola Edition will be running realme UI 4.0, Android 13 right out of the box. The retail price of the phone will be PHP18,999.00 only from realme’s Shopee Official Store, the first 100 buyers will receive PHP500.00 discount of their purchase. realme 10 Pro 5G Coca-Cola Edition will be released on midnight of 19th of March 2023.
Apple has officially announce the ‘yellow’ iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus. The yellow colorway will only for the non-pro models, unlike last year. The yellow color is an addition to the 5 colors; midnight (black), blue, purple, starlight (white), and red, when the iPhone 14 was first announced last September 2022.
This is not the first time that Apple released a iPhone color, last year they introduced the green iPhone 13, then the purple iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini, a year before.
Spec-wise, the yellow iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus will have the same components; Super Retina XDR display, A15 Bionic chip, up to 512GB of storage, Dual-rear camera system and 12MP front camera and up to 20 hours of battery life.
Colors of the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus: midnight, starlight, (PRODUCT)RED, blue, purple, and yellow.
The new yellow iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus will be available to pre-order this 10th of March and will be in retail store starting Tuesday, March 14th. Pricing will be the same as well; iPhone 14 starting price will be $799 (US) and $899 (US) for the iPhone 14 Plus.
Huawei just announced the Nova 10 Youth Edition, specs wise it looks similar to the specs of Huawei Nova 10 SE.
The Nova 10 Youth Edition features a Snapdragon 680 chipset for CPU, a 108MP main camera, and 8GB of RAM and up to 256GB storage. It features a 6.78-inch FHD+ IPS LCD display at 90Hz refresh rate. Nova 10 Youth Edition will have a 4,000 mAh battery slightly smaller than the one in the Nova 10 SE but with the same 66W fast charging. The Nova 10 Youth Edition will run HarmonyOS 2.0 right out of the box and will be available in Crystal Blue and Midnight Black colors.
Full Specs;
6.78-inch FHD+ (1080 x 2388 resolution) @387 ppi with 90Hz refresh rate
The Huawei Nova 10 Youth Edition will initially be available in China for CNY 1,699 or around SAR 920.00 for the 8GB + 128GB variant and CNY 1,899 (SAR 1028.16) for the 8GB + 256GB model. Local pricing is yet to be announce by Huawei.
It appears we will see another yellow iPhone will be as reports of a yellow iPhone 14 and 14 Plus have been floating around the net.
In an article on macrumors.com, Apple plans to release a yellow iPhone 14 and 14 Plus this spring, which is according to a Weibo post shared by Japanese blog Mac Otakara. As with any report outside Apple, we need to take this report with a grain of salt, since it’s hard to confirm the credibility of the Weibo account.
According to numerous sources, Apple’s PR department is preparing a product briefing for next week. On Tuesday, March 8 of last year, Apple introduced new Green hues for the iPhone 13 series, so there is a potential the briefing is connected to the announcement of a new iPhone color, but the topic of the briefing has not yet been confirmed.
The last time Apple released a yellow iPhone was in 2018 and 2019, when the company release the iPhone XR and iPhone 11, respectively. So far, the yellow color appears to be exclusive to iPhone 14 and 14 Plus and it’s unclear if it will find its way to the iPhone 14 Pro line, since yellow is very similar to the gold color.
Xiaomi just unveil the Xiaomi Wireless AR Glass Discovery Edition at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2023, an unexpected device to announced at the event.
Xiaomi said that its AR glasses is a new prototype Wireless AR Glass Discovery Edition, will weigh 126 grams and has a “retina-level” display. The company explained that when angular resolution or PPD (pixels per degree) approaches 60, the human eye cannot distinguish the individual pixel. The PPD of the Xiaomi Wireless AR Glasses is 58, which is the closest to AR glasses to meet this quality specification.
Instead of a built-in computing module, which make an AR Glasses look bulky, the Xiaomi Wireless AR Glass Discovery Edition will connect wirelessly to Xiaomi 13 series phone or any phones that uses Snapdragon XR2 Gen 1 Platform. The device is using Xiaomi’s own communication link to achieve full link latency as low as 50ms and 3ms1 with other smartphone devices.
Lei Jun, Xiaom’s Founder and CEO also explained;
Boasting a retina-level near-eye display for AR glasses, Xiaomi Wireless AR Glass Discovery Edition delivers a truly immersive visual experience. Moreover, our self-developed Xiaomi AR Gesture Control empowers effortless control between virtual and real space. pic.twitter.com/EipqBWxkpW
Xiaomi is not only company dipping their foot in the AR Space, Apple have been preaching that AR is the next wave of computing and not VR, while Oppo is also showcasing its Air Glasses 2. which they launched in China last year.
The Xiaomi Wireless AR Glass Discovery Edition is only available for developers and no details have been provided on the price and how to get a hold on one of these device.
At the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, Realme has announce the Realme GT3, a phones that can fully charge its 4,600mAh battery in just less than 10 minutes.
Aside from its ridiculous fast charging, the Realme GT3 is powered by Qualcomm SM8475 Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 for CPU with up to 16 GB of RAM and up to 1 TB for storage. It will feature a three-rear camera that’s compose of a 50 MP (primary wide), a 8 MP (ultrawide) and a 2 MP microscope, it also have the “Pulse Interface,” a little RGB lighting rectangle that is adjacent to the rear cameras. The “Pulse Interface” can light up in different colors for notification, charge indicator, as well as for incoming calls and count down timer for camera shot. The front shooter on the other hand is a 16 MP wide camera.
The Realme GT3 will have a 6.74 AMOLED display with 1B colors, at 144Hz, which make the phone ideal for gaming. Just like with newer Android phones, Realme removed the 3.5mm audio jack and it will have an under-display fingerprint scanner for its biometrics.
The Realme GT3 will have a starting price of $650 for an 8/128GB model, making it the cheapest Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 phones available. Going back to its fast charging, Realme explained that their “special sauce” for fast charge is the three “industry first” charging technologies. The Realme GT3 uses three 100W charging chips to achieve 98.5% transfer efficiency during charging. The power comes from a dual GaN charger that is the same size as Realme’s 150W charger from its previous smartphones, and third, is the first 12A USB cable since no one needed to push that much current over USB before.
Get ready to witness the power of #realmeGT3! Check out this video and experience the ultimate combination of speed and style. pic.twitter.com/xVtP63xvPG
Ahead of this year’s MWC that will be held in Spain, HMD the maker of Nokia smartphone, just announce their latest entry level smartphone, the Nokia C02. The phone features a removable battery, IP52 rating and a headphone jack.
The Nokia C02 features a 5.45-inch display with FWVGA+ resolution and an 18:9 aspect ratio. The Nokia C02 features a 2 MP front facing camera and a single 5 MP rear camera. The phone is made out of a polycarbonate frame and the replaceable 3,000 mAh battery will have a nano-texture. The C02 have a dual SIM slots and a microSD card slot to expand its 32 GB storage up to 256 GB. The phone will also have 2 GB of RAM.
On the software side, the Nokia C02 will be running the Go edition of Android 12 and will receive two years of security updates. Colors for the Nokia C02 will be Dark Cyan and Charcoal colors. The pricing and availability will be announce locally.
The monthly fees for the service is only ₱2,700.00 but the hardware, the Starlink Kit will cost ₱29,320, a bit pricey for hardware will include a self-orienting Starlink phased array antenna, WiFi router, cables and base. It promises to provide high-speed, low-latency broadband internet and a download speeds up to 200 Mbs.
In an archipelago like the Philippines, a space-based internet provider is the most ideal, since you do not need to invest in any cell sites and cables. It’s still unknow how’s the performance of Starlink in the Philippines and since it’s summer in the country, those who ordered it will be able to get a good connection.
Meta just announced that they’ll be testing a new verification service called Meta Verified, for both Facebook and Instagram. On his Facebook account, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said “this week we’re starting to roll out Meta Verified — a subscription service that lets you verify your account with a government ID, get a blue badge, get extra impersonation protection against accounts claiming to be you, and get direct access to customer support.”
Meta Verified accounts will enjoy the following features;
A verified badge, confirming you’re the real you and that your account has been authenticated with a government ID.
More protection from impersonation with proactive account monitoring for impersonators who might target people with growing online audiences.
Help when you need it with access to a real person for common account issues.
Increased visibility and reach with prominence in some areas of the platform– like search, comments and recommendations.
Exclusive features to express yourself in unique ways.
Zuckerberg also added that the new Meta verified service “is about increasing authenticity and security across our services.” Also, there will be no changes to accounts on Instagram and Facebook that are already verified based on prior requirements, including authenticity and notability.
Meta Verified will be first roll-out in Australia and New Zealand later this week, then to the rest of the world. Meta Verified is available for direct purchase on Instagram or Facebook in Australia and New Zealand starting later this week. Users can purchase a monthly subscription for (USD) $11.99 on the web and (USD) $14.99 on iOS and Android.
realme Philippines has officially announced 2 new smartphones under the realme 10 smartphone series; the realme 10 pro 5G and the larger realme 10 pro+ 5G.
The realme 10 pro 5G is now available for order from Shopee and Lazada, and in local retailer;
8GB RAM and 256GB of storage – ₱16,999.00
While the availability of realme 10 pro+ 5G is yet to be announce;
Steamdeck is now available in Saudi Arabia. You can purchase Valve’s handheld gaming computer – Steamdeck from Xcite, which from a quick lookup, appears to be the only local retailer to sell the gaming device. Before, if you want to purchase Steamdeck, you can either need to contact someone from the United States or buy it from the gray/black market.
The Steamdeck is a handheld gaming computer developed by Valve Corporation. Released on February 25, 2022, the Steam Deck can be played as a handheld or connected to a monitor in a similar manner to the Nintendo Switch. Steamdeck is designed to designed for playing Steam-based game, but can also support third-party storefronts like Epic Games Store, Ubisoft Connect, or Origin. The user can also replace the preinstalled SteamOS with a different operating system entirely, since it supports multi-booting.
Here are the pricing of Steamdeck, based on Xcite’s website listings;
SAR 2,498.99 – Steamdeck 64GB eMMC
SAR 3,199.00 – Steamdeck 256GB NVMe SSD
SAR 4,199.00 – Steamdeck 512GB NVMe SSD
Here’s the full specs of the Steamdeck;
Compute
Processor
AMD APU
CPU: Zen 2 4c/8t, 2.4-3.5GHz (up to 448 GFlops FP32)
GPU: 8 RDNA 2 CUs, 1.0-1.6GHz (up to 1.6 TFlops FP32)
APU power: 4-15W
realme Philippines will soon launch their realme 10 Pro Series 5G on 14th of Feb. 2023.
This is what they posted on their Facebook page;
First announced late last year, realme 10 Pro 5G is the latest flagship smartphone from the Chinese Smartphone maker. realme 10 Pro 5G features a 6.7-inches FHD+ display, powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 5G Processor with 108MP and 2MP dual rear camera, and a 16 MP front-facing selfie camera.
As for the rest of the specs, you can check them out below;
Google just announced the availability of Android 14 Developer Preview 1, which can be downloaded from Android for Developers website. The Android 14 Developer Preview 1, as the name suggest, is mainly for Android developers and Android hardware manufacturers to make sure that their apps and devices are fully compatible with the Android 14.
We released the first Developer Preview of #Android14!
It includes changes to streamline background work, along with enhancements to privacy, personalization, security, and more.
Notable features of the upcoming Android 14 are; support for tablets and foldable form factors, enhancements to performance, privacy, security, and user customization. Google plans to release the beta version of Android 14 in two months and release the final beta version by June 2023 and the candidate release up to the stable release by 3rd qtr of this year. It’s still unclear what features will be available in the final release but if you want to take a sneak peek at what is new with Android 14, then you can get the Android 14.
Samsung announced the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra with Galaxy S23 and Galaxy S23+ last Feb 1, 2023 at their Galaxy Unpacked 2023. In a nutshell, the Galaxy S23 and Galaxy S23+ are the same phones with different screen size while the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra is the premium version that supports S-Pen and features a 200 MP camera.
You can read more about the new Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, Galaxy S23 and Galaxy S23+ here.
Aside from the new Galaxy S23 phones, Samsung also announced in their Galaxy Unpacked 2023 event, the Galaxy Book3 series; the Galaxy Book3 Ultra, Book3 Pro 360, Book3 360 and Book3 Pro. Except for the Galaxy Book3 Ultra all other Galaxy Book3 features similar specs.
Samsung describes the Galaxy Book3 Ultra as a “premium PC” with “ultra-high-performance computing,” while the Galaxy Book3 Pro 360 is a 2-in-1 convertible that supports S Pen functionality and the Galaxy Book3 Pro will be the the thinnest laptop in the series. The new Galaxy Book3 Ultra and Pro series will have a full aluminum frame and parts built from recycled plastics.
All Galaxy Book3 will be connected to an assortment of services like the Windows / Microsoft Phone Link; Windows / Microsoft Phone Link’s to Recent Websites; Instant Hotspot; Samsung Multi Control, Samsung Pass and much much more.
The Galaxy Book3 Ultra will be Samsung’s entry to the gaming space, since it features Intel’s 13th Gen Intel® Core™ i9 processor and NVIDIA® RTX Geforce™ 4070 laptop GPU. Both the Galaxy Book3 Ultra and Pro series will be available in 14-inches and 16-inches displays, that uses Samsung’s Dynamic AMOLED 2X display, first used in Galaxy premium smartphone lineup display. The display supports 3K (2880×1800) resolution, and 120Hz refresh rate. It is also VESA ClearMR and DisplayHDR TRUE BLACK 500 certified, and has received SGS Eye Care Display certification.
As for its availability, the new Galaxy Book3 series will be available for purchase this February 17th, 2023, starting with the Galaxy Book3 Pro and Pro360 models in select markets.
The Galaxy Book3 Pro will start at $1449.99, available in 14-inch and 16-inch sizes with Graphite and Beige color options. The Galaxy Book3 Pro 360 will start at $1899.99, available in 16-inch size with Graphite and Beige color options, and Galaxy Book3 Ultra will have a starting price of $2,399.99, available in a 16-inch size in Graphite.
Here’s the specs of the 16-inches Galaxy Book3 Pro 360.
Last Wednesday, Feb. 1st, at the Galaxy Unpacked 2023 – Samsung has officially announced their next line of smartphones, the Galaxy S23 Ultra. It composed of 3 new smartphones; the Galaxy S23 and the larger Galaxy S23+, then there’s the premium version the Galaxy S23 Ultra.
Samsung Galaxy S23 and the Galaxy S23+
The Galaxy S23 and Galaxy S23+ are basically the same phones, the only difference is on the display, storage and battery. The Galaxy S23 features a 6.1-inch FHD+ Dynamic AMOLED display and a 3,900mAh battery, while the Galaxy S23+ will have a 6.1-inch FHD+ Dynamic AMOLED display and a whopping 4,700mAh battery.
Both phones will use Corning’s latest Gorilla Glass Victus 2 and Quamcomm’s Snapdragon® 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform.
Both Galaxy S23s will have same 8GB RAM, the storage offerings of the smaller Galaxy S23 will start at 128GB, up to 256GB of storage, while the larger Galaxy 23+ will be 256GB and up to 512GB of storage.
Both the Galaxy S23 and the Galaxy S23+ will be available in 4 colors; Cream, Lavender, Phantom Black, Green. Plus 2 online exclusive colors; Lime and Graphite. The starting price of the Galaxy S23 will be $799.99 and the Galaxy S23+ will be $999.99. Samsung is already taking pre-orders.
Samsung Galaxy S23 & Galaxy S23 Plus
Here are the specs for both the Galaxy S23 and Galaxy S23+;
Galaxy S23
Galaxy S23+
Display
6.1-inch FHD+*
6.6-inch FHD+*
Dynamic AMOLED 2X Display
Dynamic AMOLED 2X Display
Super Smooth 120Hz refresh rate (48~120Hz)
Super Smooth 120Hz refresh rate (48~120Hz)
240Hz Touch Sampling Rate in Game Mode
240Hz Touch Sampling Rate in Game Mode
Vision booster
Vision booster
Enhanced comfort
Enhanced comfort
Dimensions & Weight
2.79 x 5.76 x 0.3in, 5.93oz
3.07 x 6.43 x 0.35in, 6.91oz
Camera
12MP Ultra-Wide Camera
• F2.2, FOV 120˚
50 MP Wide Camera
• F1.8, FOV 85˚
10MP Telephoto Camera
• 3x Optical Zoom, F2.4, FOV 36˚
12MP Front Camera
• F2.2, FOV 80˚
Processor
Snapdragon® 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform for Galaxy
Memory & Storage
8 + 256GB
8 + 512GB
8 + 128GB
8 + 256GB
Battery
3,900mAh
4,700mAh
OS
Android 13
One UI 5.1
Network and Connectivity
5G*, LTE**, Wi-Fi 6E***, Wi-Fi Direct Bluetooth® v 5.3
Security
Samsung Knox, Samsung Knox Vault
Water Resistance
IP68
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
Samsung also announced a premium smartphones that they’re calling the Galaxy S23 Ultra. From the looks of its specs, Samsung went all-out on this device. Just like the Galaxy S23 and the Galaxy S23+, the Galaxy S23 Ultra uses Corning’s Gorilla Glass Victus 2 and powered by Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform. It supports the S Pen, for productivity, notetaking, hobbies, etc.
The Galaxy S23 Ultra will also have the largest battery capacity with 5,000mAh and the main rear camera will use a “new 200MP Adaptive Pixel sensor” for taking that “epic” photo.
The Galaxy S23 Ultra will be available in 3 configuration; 12GB RAM with 1TB storage, 12GB RAM and a 512GB storage, and 8GB RAM with 256GB storage. The phone will be available in available in 4 colors; Cream, Lavender, Phantom Black, Green; and 4 online exclusive colors; Lime, Graphite, Sky Blue, and Red.
The starting price for the Galaxy S23 Ultra will be at $1,199.99 for the 8GB RAM + 256GB storage configuration. Pre-order for the Galaxy S23 Ultra is now available.
Here’s the specs of the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra;
Galaxy S23 Ultra
Display
6.8-inch QHD+ Edge*
Dynamic AMOLED 2X Display
Super Smooth 120Hz refresh rate (1~120Hz)
240Hz Touch Sampling Rate in Game Mode
Vision booster
Enhanced comfort
Dimensions & Weight
3.07 x 6.43 x 0.35 in , 8.25oz
Camera
12MP Ultra-Wide Camera
• F2.2, FOV 120˚
200 MP Wide Camera
• F1.7, FOV 85˚
10MP Telephoto Camera
• 3x Optical Zoom, F2.4, FOV 36˚
10MP Telephoto Camera
• 10x Optical Zoom, F4.9, FOV 11˚
12MP Front Camera
• F2.2, FOV 80˚
AP
Snapdragon® 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform for Galaxy
Memory & Storage
12GB + 1TB
12 + 512GB
8 + 256GB
Battery
5,000mAh
OS
Android 13
One UI 5.1
Network and Connectivity
5G*, LTE**, Wi-Fi 6E***, Wi-Fi Direct Bluetooth® v 5.3
Official Unveiling of the Samsung Galaxy S23 Series
Together with the new Mac mini, Apple also announced a new MacBook Pro powered by the new M2 Pro and M2 Max. With the new M2 Pro and M2 Max, the new Macbook Pros’ “battery life will be up to 22 hours — the longest battery life ever in a Mac.”
The new Macbook Pro features Liquid Retina XDR display, 16GB unified memory that’s configurable up to 96GB RAM, a 22 hours battery life, 512GB SSD storage which you can upgrade up to 8 TB. As for expansion slots, you’ll find SDXC card slot, HDMI port, 3.5 mm headphone jack and MagSafe 3 port for charging. It also have Thunderbolt 4 for charging and display. Its backlit magic Keyboard will have an integrated Touch ID, ambient light sensor and force Touch trackpad for precise cursor control and pressure-sensing capabilities; enables Force clicks, accelerators, pressure-sensitive drawing, and multi-touch gestures.
For connectivity it supports Wi-Fi 6E 802.11ax and Bluetooth 5.3. The new Macbook Pro will have a 1080p FaceTime HD camera, six built-in speakers with force-cancelling woofers and wide stereo sounds. If you’re concern about the weight there a very small different between the weight of the Macbook Pro with M2 Pro and M2 Max. Right out of the box, the new Macbook Pro will run Apple’s latest macOS Ventura.
The new MacBook Pro models with M2 Pro and M2 Max are now available for order in 27 countries and they will begin arriving to customers and will be in Apple Store locations and Apple Authorized Resellers starting Tuesday, January 24.
The new 14-inch MacBook Pro with M2 Pro starts at $1,999 (USD) and the 16-inch MacBook Pro with M2 Pro starts at $2,499 (US).
MacBook Pro with M2 Pro and M2 Max will be available in Australia, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Macau, New Zealand, and Singapore beginning Friday, February 3.
Apple just announced an updated version of the Mac mini powered by their very own M2 and the all-new M2 Pro Soc.
Mac Mini with M2 chip
The new Mac mini with the M2 features an 8-core CPU with four high-performance and four high-efficiency cores, along with a 10-core GPU — perfect for users looking for superfast performance and incredible productivity at an even more affordable starting price of $599. It supports up to 24GB of unified memory and 100GB/s of bandwidth and the M2 model can also simultaneously play up to two streams of 8K ProRes 422 video at 30 fps, or up to 12 streams of 4K ProRes 422 video at 30 fps.
Specs of Mac Mini with M2 chip;
Apple M2 chip
– 8-core CPU with 4 performance cores and 4 efficiency cores
– 10-core GPU
– 16-core Neural Engine
– 100GB/s memory bandwidth
8GB unified RAM, configurable to 16GB or 24GB
256GB SSD, configurable to 512GB, 1TB, or 2TB
2x Thunderbolt 4 ports
2x USB-A ports
HDMI port
Gigabit Ethernet ports
3.5 mm headphone jack
Built-in speaker
Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3, Ethernet Connectivity
3.58cm x 19.70cm x 19.70cm dimension
1.18 kg weight
Apple Mac mini with Studio Display and Magic accessories.
Mac Mini with M2 Pro chip
The new Mac mini with the M2 Pro will provide pro-level performance with up to 12-core CPU with eight high-performance cores and four high-efficiency cores, together with an up to a 19-core GPU. It supports up to 32GB of memory, a faster Neural Engine and a powerful media engine for streaming 8K ProRes 422 video at 30 fps, or up to 23 streams of 4K ProRes 422 video at 30 fps. The M2 Pro-powered model is up to 14x faster than the fastest Intel-based Mac mini.
Specs of Mac Mini with M2 Pro chip;
Apple M2 Pro chip
– 10-core CPU with 6 performance cores and 4 efficiency cores
– 16-core GPU
– 16-core Neural Engine
– 200GB/s memory bandwidth
16GB unified RAM, configurable 32GB
512GB SSD, configurable to 1TB, 2TB, 4TB, or 8TB
4x Thunderbolt 4 ports
2x USB-A ports
HDMI port
Gigabit Ethernet ports
3.5 mm headphone jack
Built-in speaker
Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3, Ethernet Connectivity
3.58cm x 19.70cm x 19.70cm dimension
1.28 kg weight
The new Mac mini with M2 and M2 Pro is now available for order and will start arriving to customers, and in Apple Store locations and Apple Authorized Resellers, starting Tuesday, January 24. Mac mini with M2 will have starting price of $599, while the Mac mini with M2 Pro will be $1,299. Mac mini with M2 and M2 Pro will be available in Australia, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Macau, and New Zealand beginning Friday, February 3.
LinkedIn, the social media network for professionals and businesses just reveal the 15 fastest-growing job titles in the Philippines. The list is a good reference for those who are planning to switch jobs or gauge if there’s long term opportunity in the industry where you’re at.
LinkedIn explained that the list was published by “LinkedIn Economic Graph researchers examined millions of jobs started by LinkedIn members from January 1, 2018 to July 31, 2022 to calculate a growth rate for each job title.” and added “To be ranked, a job title needed to see consistent growth across our membership base, as well as have grown to a meaningful size by 2022.”
Here’s the full list of LinkedIn’s 15 fastest-growing job titles in the Philippines;
Clinical Research Associate
What they do: Clinical research associates are responsible for the setup, conduct, and supervision of clinical trials and studies designed to determine the effectiveness and safety of drugs, products, and procedures.
Most common skills: Good Clinical Practice (GCP), Clinical Monitoring, Clinical Trial Management System (CTMS)
Most common industries: Manufacturing, Professional Services, Hospitals and Health Care
Business Development Representative
What they do: Business development representatives help both the marketing and sales departments of a company by identifying, connecting, and nurturing new clients in order to generate new revenue.
Most common skills: Lead Generation, Business Development, Cold Calling.
Most common industries: Technology and Media, Professional Services, Entertainment Providers.
Insights Analyst
What they do: Insights analysts are responsible for translating a company’s financial, customer, and market data into insights that can help the business make informed decisions.
Most common skills: Microsoft Power BI, Business Insights, Data Visualization
Most common industries: Professional Services, Manufacturing, Technology and Media
Delivery Specialist
What they do: Delivery specialists manage projects on behalf of clients, making sure that projects are completed within deadlines and budgets and that projects meet every client specification.
Most common skills: Service Delivery, Alteryx, Business Process Improvement
Most common industries: Professional Services, Technology and Media, Administrative and Support Services
Anti-Money Laundering Analyst
What they do: Anti-money laundering analysts help organizations comply with anti-money laundering regulations by monitoring financial transactions and investigating any suspicious activity.
Most common skills: KYC Verification, Anti-Money Laundering, Due Diligence
Most common industries: Financial Services, Professional Services, Technology and Media
Media Analyst
What they do: Media analysts measure the success of advertising campaigns and other marketing activities through the monitoring of media channels and analysis of media data.
Most common skills: Media Analysis, Media Monitoring, Data Analysis
Most common industries: Professional Services, Technology and Media, Financial Services
Customer Success Specialist
What they do: Customer success specialists help businesses retain existing customers by responding to inquiries, resolving issues, and providing other support that ensure customer satisfaction.
Most common skills: Account Management, Customer Success, Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
Most common industries: Professional Services, Financial Services, Technology and Media
Virtual Medical Assistant
What they do: Virtual medical assistants take care of many administrative and clerical duties for clinics or hospitals, including the maintenance of medical databases, appointment scheduling, patient billing, and insurance coverage processing.
Most common skills: Virtual Assistance, Medical Assisting, Appointment Scheduling
Most common industries: Professional Services, Hospitals and Health Care, Administrative and Support Services
Salesforce Consultant
What they do: Salesforce consultants help companies use the Salesforce CRM software, providing expert guidance during the setup, implementation, and optimisation of the tool to suit the company’s needs.
Most common skills: Salesforce.com Administration, Apex Programming, Salesforce Sales Cloud
Most common industries: Professional Services, Technology and Media, Manufacturing
Data Engineer
What they do: Data engineers work with raw data and transform it into a format that’s more accessible and usable for further analysis by data scientists.
Most common skills: Data Engineering, Load (ETL), Python (Programming Language)
Most common industries: Professional Services, Financial Services, Oil, Gas, and Mining
Security Operations Center Analyst
What they do: Security operations center analysts protect a company’s computer network by monitoring system activity, identifying and responding to threats, and patching any system security flaw.
Most common skills: Security Information and Event Management (SIEM), Security Operations Center, Cybersecurity
Most common industries: Professional Services, Financial Services, Technology and Media
DevOps Engineer
What they do: DevOps engineers sit between software development and software operation teams to improve end user experience, balancing the rollout of new features with maintaining the stability and security of the software.
Most common skills: DevOps, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Kubernetes
Most common industries: Professional Services, Financial Services, Technology and Media
Product Owner
What they do: Product owners take the lead in all aspects of new product development and are responsible for setting the vision for the product, deciding what features the product should have, and managing the whole process from start to finish.
Most common skills: Agile Methodologies, Scrum, Product Management
Most common industries: Financial Services, Professional Services, Technology and Media
Cloud Engineer
What they do: Cloud engineers manage a company’s cloud-based systems and are responsible for setting it up, ensuring its stability, implementing updates, and customizing its features to suit end users’ needs.
Most common skills: Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, Cloud Computing
Most common industries: Professional Services, Technology and Media, Manufacturing
Tax Associate
What they do: Tax associates help organizations file their taxes correctly, find opportunities for tax deductions, and provide guidance on tax-related matters.
Most common skills: Tax Preparation, Tax Compliance, Accounting
Most common industries: Professional Services, Financial Services, Real Estate and Equipment Rental Services
Apple just announced that they are adding karaoke features to Apple Music. The company said that they’re calling this new feature Apple Music Sing, “a new feature that allows users to sing along to their favorite songs with adjustable vocals and real-time lyrics.” It added that “Apple Music Sing offers multiple lyric views to help fans take the lead, perform duets, sing backup, and more — all integrated within Apple Music’s unparalleled lyrics experience.”
The new feature will be available this month to all Apple Music Subscribers worldwide and can be access using compatible iPhones, iPads, and the new Apple TV 4K. Apple will also create 50 dedicated companion playlists featuring all of the karaoke friendly songs all around the world to sing and it’s fully optimized for the Apple Music Sing experience.
The compatible devices that Apple Music Sing will be available are; iPhone 11 to the latest iPhones; iPhone SE (third-generation, 2022); the iPad 9, 10, iPad mini 6, iPad Air 4 and 5; the M1 and M2 iPad Pro, and the said devices needs to updated to the latest iOS 16.2, which will be release this December 2022.
Apple just announced this year’s App Store Award winners and looks like games dominated this year’s winners. Apple also announced the winners for apps that have the most Cultural Impact, which are apps that “impacted people’s lives in awesome ways.”
The winning apps are selected selected by Apple’s App Store editorial international teams for their technical innovation, user experience and design, and the impact these apps have had on our lives. You can checkout the complete list below;
2022 App Store Award winners
iPhone App of the Year: BeReal
iPhone Game of the Year: Apex Legends Mobile
iPad App of the Year: GoodNotes 5
iPad Game of the Year: Moncage
Apple Watch App of the Year: Gentler Streak
Apple TV Game of the Year: El Hijo
Apple TV App of the Year: ViX
Mac App of the Year: MacFamilyTree 10
Mac Game of the Year: Inscryption
Apple Arcade Game of the Year: Wylde Flowers
China Game of the Year: League of Legends Esports Manager
Cultural Impact winners
Dot’s Home – Game(Free).
How We Feel – emotional wellbeing journal (Free).
Inua – Free Game.
Locket Widget – Social network and photo sharing (Free).
Waterllama – Health & Fitness (Free with in-app purchases).
After it failed to reach an agreement with China’s Netease Games, US gaming giant, Blizzard Entertainment will suspend most, if not all of its services in China starting this January 2023. Both Netease Games and Blizzard Entertainment where not able to extend their 14-year licensing agreement, since started 2008.
It’s unclear how failed extension will affect both companies and but all is not lost, since Blizzard’s mobile game Diablo Immortal will continue operating under a separate agreement with NetEase.
IRVINE, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Nov. 16, 2022– Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. announced today that it will be suspending most Blizzard game services in mainland China due to the expiration of the current licensing agreements with NetEase, Inc. on January 23, 2023. This includes World of Warcraft®, Hearthstone®, Warcraft® III: Reforged, Overwatch®, the StarCraft® series, Diablo III®, and Heroes of the Storm®. Diablo Immortal® co-development and publishing is covered under a separate agreement between the two companies.
Blizzard Entertainment has had licensing agreements with NetEase since 2008, covering the publication of these Blizzard titles in China. The two parties have not reached a deal to renew the agreements that is consistent with Blizzard’s operating principles and commitments to players and employees, and the agreements are set to expire in January 2023.
We will suspend new sales in the coming days and Chinese players will be receiving details of how this will work soon. Upcoming releases for World of Warcraft: Dragonflight, Hearthstone: March of the Lich King, and season 2 of Overwatch 2 will proceed later this year.
“We’re immensely grateful for the passion our Chinese community has shown throughout the nearly 20 years we’ve been bringing our games to China through NetEase and other partners,” said Mike Ybarra, president, Blizzard Entertainment. “Their enthusiasm and creativity inspire us, and we are looking for alternatives to bring our games back to players in the future.”
Partnership like this is not uncommon in the gaming industry, since Riot Games partnered with Chinese gaming company Tencent distribute League of Legends in the country before the Chinese company acquired Riot Games for around $400 million.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has announced the launching of Ceer – “the first Saudi electric vehicle brand that will contribute to Saudi Arabia’s automotive manufacturing sector.” The announcement is part of PIR and Saudi’s plan to diversify the country’s economy, as it moves away from oil dependency.
Ceer will also contribute to Kingdom’s “efforts towards carbon emissions reduction and driving sustainability to address the impact of climate change.” In the official announcement published by Saudi Press Agency (SPA), his Royal Highness Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Prime Minister and Chairman of the Public Investment Fund (PIF) said;
Saudi Arabia is not just building a new automotive brand, we are igniting a new industry and an ecosystem that attracts international and local investments, creates job opportunities for local talent, enables the private sector, and contributes to increasing Saudi Arabia’s GDP over the next decade, as part of PIF’s strategy to drive the economic growth in line with Vision 2030.
Ceer is the first Saudi automotive brand that will will design, manufacture and sell a range of electric vehicles for consumers in Saudi Arabia and the MENA region. It is projected that Ceer will attract more than US$150 million of foreign direct investment, and create up to 30,000 direct and indirect jobs. Ceer is projected to directly contribute US$8 billion to Saudi Arabia’s GDP by 2034.
Ceer motors, the company behind Ceer, is a joint venture between PIF and Foxconn, will be using technology from BMW for its vehicle development process. Foxconn will also develop the electrical architecture of the vehicle, to power its infotainment, connectivity and autonomous driving technologies. Each vehicle will be designed and manufactured in Saudi Arabia, and will be tested to the highest global automotive quality control and safety standards. Ceer vehicles are expected to be on the road by 2025.
If you are still high on the recent announcement of the new iPhone 14 series, and want to immediately order the device, then you’ve come to the right place.
There are a number of ways you can pre-order the iPhone 14; you can preorder the device thru your carrier or thru a retailer.
These are the leading carrier in Saudi Arabia where you can preorder the latest Apple smartphone;
Mobily – orders will be released 16/09/2022 except for iPhone 14 Plus which will be available on October 7th, 2022.
STC – you can order via mystc app, which means that you should be a current STC subscriber in order to have an active MY STC account.
Virgin Mobile – they offer a limited number of of iPhone 14s for pre-order. You can also pre-register your interest and once iPhone 14 are available they will notify you over SMS.
Virgin Mobile – you can pre order thru their mobile app.
Zain – Stock is limited, 1 order per customer and the iPhone will be released on 16 September 2022, while the iPhone 14 Plus will be available by 7th of October .
If you want to go and place your pre order thru a retailer, then these are the leading retailers in the Kingdom;
All retailers said that the the iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max will be release on September 16, 2022, while iPhone 14 Plus will be available by October 7th.
If you’re like me, who is just catching up on the latest gadget/tech news for past two weeks, then you’re on the right place. Samsung recently help their annual unpacked and announced the latest products namely the Galaxy Z Flip4, Galaxy ZFold4, Galaxy Watch5 and Watch5 Pro and Galaxy Buds2 Pro.
To relive the experience, you can watch replay of the event below;
