Nubia X uses dual screens instead of notch

There’s no doubt that the display notch is a controversial design choice. While manufacturers are eager to squeeze in extra screen real estate, they’re also aware that many customers aren’t crazy about the look. But Chinese manufacturer Nubia thinks it has a solution. Rather than creating a notch for the selfie camera, the company has added a second screen to the rear of its new flagship phone, the Nubia X.

The second display isn’t a joke, either. It’s a large 1520×720 OLED display designed to allow users to take selfies using the rear camera. When turned off, the rear display melds into the multi-hued glass back, hiding any trace of it. While users can use the rear display for any function, the front features a far nicer 6.26-inch 2280×1080 display with ultra-slim bezels.

This is the Nubia X, a dual-screen phone with a very high screen ratio.
Source: Weibo 字幕 GOUBA pic.twitter.com/L2So4FdzNU

— Ice universe (@UniverseIce) October 31, 2018

Powering the phone is a Snapdragon 845 processor paired with 6GB or 8GB of RAM. Other specs include 16-megapixel + 24-megapixel rear cameras, 64/128/256GB storage, dual-SIM support, Android 8.1 Oreo with Nubia UI 6.0.2, and a 3800mAh battery.

Fans of the Nubia X may be out of luck if they aren’t based in China. While Nubia has released the device in its home country, it hasn’t provided any indicator of a global launch.

What are your thoughts on this unique design? Better than the notch?

Gallery

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Android and Me 8:42 AM No comments

T-Mobile announces more mid-band LTE upgrades

T-Mobile has quite a turnaround story. Once the small underdog of the Big Four U.S. carriers, the company has spent several years turning itself around. Now, T-Mobile is the third largest carrier with a loyal fanbase and lightning fast LTE speeds. But the Magenta carrier isn’t resting on its laurels. T-Mobile is continuing to upgrade its network, particularly through mid-band LTE spectrum upgrades.

100s of sites were upgraded with more midband capacity in just the last two weeks and #WeWontStop! This is why we’ve had the fastest LTE network for 4 years!! @TMobile @MetroPCS #Amped pic.twitter.com/oN98WAjEnp

— Neville (@NevilleRay) October 31, 2018

T-Mobile’s Chief Technology Officer, Neville Ray, is touting the latest upgrades, tweeting, “100s of sites were upgraded with more midband capacity in just the last two weeks and #WeWontStop!” The midband LTE upgrades are vital to T-Mobile’s continued improvement of its network, ensuring that existing spectrum doesn’t get bogged down with traffic.

While these latest upgrades affect a broad range of areas, some highlights include Grand Rapids, MI, Nashville, TN, Raleigh, NC, and Washington D.C.

It’s good to see T-Mobile taking care of its customers and the high-quality network is a perfect fit for the OnePlus 6T, which is now available through T-Mobile, the exclusive carrier partner of OnePlus.

T-Mobile customers, what do you think of your network? Are you in one of the cities seeing upgrades?

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The Android Dev Summit app is live! Get ready for November 7-8

Posted by Matt Pearring, Associate Product Marketing Manager, Developer Marketing

In just a week, we'll be kicking off Android Dev Summit 2018, broadcasting live from the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, CA on November 7 and 8. We'll have two days of deep technical sessions from the Android engineering team, with over 30 sessions livestreamed. The app just went live; download it on Google Play and start planning.

With the app you can explore the conference schedule with details on keynotes, sessions, and lightning talks. You can also plan your summit experience by saving events to your personalized schedule. This year's app is also an Instant app, so you can try it out first before installing it!

Android Dev Summit app screenshots

If you can't join in person, you can always join us online — we'll be livestreaming all of the sessions on the Android Dev Summit website or app and making them available on YouTube throughout the conference so you can watch at your own pace. Plus, we will share updates directly from the Computer History Museum to our social channels, so be sure to follow along!

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Android Developers Blog 6:31 AM No comments

LG rumored to showcase foldable phone at CES next year

CES is usually a place where you can find a lot of future-seeking devices and technology, and it looks like LG may be readying a foldable phone to showcase at the event.

It’s just a rumor now, but according to a tweet sent out by serial leaker Evan Blass (@evleaks), the Life’s Good crew is planning on showing off a “foldable phone” at its keynote event during CES 2019. Blass says first that he “can’t speak for Samsung” in this regard, so it sounds like we shouldn’t expect to see a competing product from Samsung at CES in a few months.

However, that may be because Samsung is already planning on showing off its own upcoming foldable smartphone in November. The company is hosting its developers conference then, and rumor has it we’ll see something regarding the foldable device then.

Things may be getting very exciting again when it comes to smartphone design in the very near future. Are you looking forward to foldable smartphones?

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Android and Me 5:52 AM No comments

Nokia 6.1 being updated to Android Pie

Nokia has been pretty good with updating its devices lately, and the next device to get the latest Android has to offer is the Nokia 6.1.

The device is now receiving the update to Android 9.0 Pie. This update is quite large and includes a new swipeable navigation method, adaptive battery and brightness, and more. Nokia is also adding Google Lens support to the camera app as a bonus.

If you have one of these devices, head to the settings and check for updates! Don’t fret if you don’t see it immediately; it may be a staged rollout.

Android 9 Pie: now available on Nokia 6.1! AI-power your Nokia 6.1 as it gets smarter, faster and adapts as you use it. We are serving with a side of cool refreshed imaging expereince including Google Lens integration pic.twitter.com/et5fkKhbst

— Juho Sarvikas (@sarvikas) October 30, 2018

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Viber now allows users to edit sent messages

Making a typo you can't correct is one of the more frustrating parts of text communication. Viber seems to agree, because now you're able to edit messages you've sent through the service. Like in other apps that offer similar functions, edited messages will be marked as such to limit any possible confusion.

Editing works about like you'd expect: long press the message you want to fix, tap edit, make your changes, and that's it.

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Viber now allows users to edit sent messages was written by the awesome team at Android Police.

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Apps , Apps/Games – Android Police – Android News , Games , Phones , reviews , Tablets 1:06 AM No comments

Spotify family account users can get a free Google Home Mini

Today may be Halloween, but Spotify is waiting until tomorrow to give its family plan subscribers a treat.

Spotify Premium for Family plan subscribers can get a free Google Home Mini starting tomorrow, November 1, through December 31. You just need to be the master account holder and then point your browser to this page on Spotify’s website tomorrow, and the free smart speaker will be yours.

Of course, you can enjoy Spotify music on the Google Home Mini using your voice by saying things like “Hey Google, play Spotify” and “Hey Google, play Hip Hop music”. You can also control playback, raise and lower volume, and like and dislike songs from the Google Home Mini. That’s all in addition to the speakers other capabilities, like answering your random questions and controlling your smart home devices.

This is a great deal for anyone with a Spotify Premium for Family plan. Normally the Google Home Mini costs $49, but with this deal, you can score one for being on the Spotify family plan that costs just $14.99 per month. This is a limited offer, though, so you’d better act claim your free smart speaker tomorrow.

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Android and Me 12:27 AM No comments

Honor Magic 2 features a slider design and Kirin 980 processor

Years ago, smartphones used to flip and slide and twist thanks to unique design decisions, and it looks like Honor is ready to help bring that back to life in 2018.

The Huawei sub-brand has just officially launched its newest smartphone, the Honor Magic 2, in China. The handset features a slider design which hides the three front-facing cameras so that the handset doesn’t have to rely on a notch of any kind. That means you’ll have to slide down that 6.39-inch 2340×1080 AMOLED display to access the selfie camera.

Under the hood, the Magic 2 features the Huawei-made Kirin 980 processor and either 6GB or 8GB of RAM. The handset comes with a 3500mAh battery, Android 9.0 Pie, support for NFC, a USB-C port for charging, and an in-display fingerprint reader. It does not have a 3.5mm headphone jack, though.

As for the cameras, there are three on the back, situated in a vertical fashion. The primary shooter is 16MP with an f/1.8 aperture. There is also a 24MP f/1.8 monochromatic camera and a 16-megapixel f/2.2 super wide-angle shooter. And around front, there is a primary 16MP f/2.0 camera and a pair of 2MP f/2.4 cameras.

Things are a bit different if you opt for the most expensive “3D Light” variant of the handset. This model actually drops the pair of 2MP front-facing cameras in favor of infrared sensors and an additional module with a dot projector.

There are three colors to choose from — red, blue, and black — each with a gradient that really makes the handsets pop. Pricing starts at 3,799 yuan (~$545) for the base model, which comes with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of built-in storage. Or you can pay 4,799 yuan (~$690) for 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. That 3D Light model? It will retail for 5,799 yuan (~$830) when it goes on sale in December, and boasts 512GB of storage with 8GB of RAM.

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