Huawei is holding a big event on November 26 to introduce the Mate 70 lineup and the Mate X6 foldable smartphone. Today, we learned that the company is also launching FreeBuds Pro 4, the first TWS earbuds with HarmonyOS Next.
The reveal came through a Weibo post featuring a single image of the FreeBuds Pro 4. The buds are quite similar visually to the FreeBuds Pro 3 but with a finer edge of the stem. It will also have Huawei Sound, which appears to be a rebrand of Huawei Histen audio features.
The most noticeable changes include grille patterns on the sides and back of the earbuds, likely added for aesthetics. The teaser also has the buds in a sleek black-metallic finish, paired with a gold Huawei Sound logo and a bold gold rim encircling the back cover stick.
These earbuds having a dedicated operating system means they will feature extended integration in the HarmonyOS Next environment, which should include the new Mate smartphones, Pura 70 devices in China, and the Pocket 2 clamshell foldable.
Huawei is set to launch the FreeBuds Pro 4 on November 26th at the company’s Mate Brand Festival. The event will also introduce other new products, including the Mate 70 smartphone series.
While we are short on specs on FreeBuds Pro 4, let’s look at the specs of its predecessor.
The FreeBuds Pro 3 features advanced active noise cancellation (ANC) 3.0 and the Kirin A2 chip, which uses Polar code technology for impressive 1.5Mbps lossless audio transmission.
It also delivers improved sound quality, noise reduction, and battery life. With QuietCall 2.0, these earbuds excel at minimizing background noise during calls. In terms of battery life, the FreeBuds Pro 3 offers up to 7 hours of playback on a single charge, extending to 30 hou2rs with the charging case.
The FreeBuds Pro 4 will likely build on these features and may also introduce new AI features. After all, 2024 has been a year of AI.
Samsung Electronics today hosted the Samsung Developer Conference Korea 2024 (SDC24 Korea), the company unveiled the second-generation Gauss2 multimodal AI model, which supports up to 14 languages and various programming languages.
During the keynote address, the company unveiled Samsung Gauss2, the second generation of its proprietary AI model, and highlighted its improved performance, efficiency and various application possibilities.
“Samsung Electronics is committed to developing cutting-edge software, including AI and data analytics, to enhance user experiences,” said Paul Kyungwhoon Cheun, President, CTO of the Device eXperience (DX) Division and Head of Samsung Research. “With three distinct models, Samsung Gauss2 is already boosting our internal productivity, and we plan to integrate it into products to deliver higher levels of convenience and personalization.”
Samsung Gauss2 offers improved performance and efficiency in simultaneously handling various data types as a multimodal model integrating language, code and images. It is available in three distinct models catered to different purposes: Compact, Balanced and Supreme.
Compact is a small-sized model built for speed and efficiency and is ideal for on-device usage "by maximizing the utilization of the device's computing resources."
Balanced offers a mix of performance and efficiency aimed at diverse tasks that require consistency. Supreme is built for performance, and Samsung says it reduces "computational costs during training and inference processes while maintaining high levels of both performance and efficiency."
Depending on which model is used, Gauss2 supports 9 to 14 human languages and several programming languages. Samsung says that Balanced and Supreme match or beat other AI models on tasks in English and Korean. Even better, “their processing speed per hour is 1.5 to 3 times faster”, which reduces costs and wait times for services powered by the AI model.
Having an internal generative AI model allows easier customization so that optimal performance can be achieved for specific goals and applications.With the power of Samsung Gauss, the in-house coding assistant ‘code.i’ assists the company’s software developers.Now upgraded to Samsung Gauss2, it is being utilized by business units within the Device eXperience (DX) Division and overseas research institutes.
Since its launch last December, the monthly usage of code.i has quadrupled, with about 60% of all software developers in the DX Division are now using it. The service was expanded to overseas subsidiaries in April. In addition, starting from August, Samsung is using Samsung Gauss to call center staff to automatically categorize and summarize customer calls.
Under the AI vision of “AI for All,” Samsung will continue to expand the reach of its AI-based services across all product lines so that users can experience more convenient and enjoyable daily lives. And by integrating knowledge graph technology with AI, Samsung expects to provide even more enhanced personalization services.
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Following its announcement in China last month, the Oppo Pad 3 Pro is now making its global rollout alongside the Find X8 series.
The newly announced Oppo Pad 3 Pro runs on Android 14 with ColorOS 14.1 and sports a 12.1-inch 3K (2,120x3,000 pixels) display with 144Hz adaptive refresh rate, 303ppi pixel density, 900 nits peak brightness, and up to 540Hz touch sampling rate. The display is certified by TUV Rheinland for Intelligent Eye Care and Circadian Friendly and has Dolby Vision support.
Oppo Pad 3 Pro runs on Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 Leading Version chipset with Adreno 750 GPU, along with 12GB LPDDR5X RAM and 256GB UFS 4.0 storage. This Qualcomm chipset has up to 3.4GHz clock speed.
For optics, the Oppo Pad 3 Pro has a 13-megapixel rear camera and an 8-megapixel selfie shooter. It has eight speakers with Hi-Res audio and Hi-Res wireless audio certification.
Connectivity options available on the Oppo Pad 3 Pro include Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4, and USB Type-C port. Sensors onboard are an accelerometer, colour temperature sensor, geomagnetic sensor, light sensor, gravity sensor, gyroscope, and hall sensor. It supports facial recognition.
If these specs sound familiar, there’s good reason – Pad 3 Pro is a rebadged OnePlus Pad 2 with ColorOS14.1 instead of OxygenOS14.1 on the software side.
Currently, the Pad 3 Pro comes in a single Starlit Blue color option. The global launch price is set at €600 (around $632 USD) or £499 for the sole 12GB RAM and 256GB storage configuration.
Oppo is offering a pre-order incentive for those who purchase the Pad 3 Pro before December 31st. These early adopters will receive the Oppo Pencil 2 Pro stylus and the Oppo Smart Keyboard free of charge, adding value to the overall package.
Remember in 2019 when Google announced that it was giving up on tablets? And then teased the Pixel Tablet in 2022 before ultimately releasing it in 2023? Well, it looks like And now it turns out that the Pixel Tablet will also be joining that list again, though not before getting one more iteration.
There is currently only the first generation Pixel Tablet available on the market. Insiders from Google claim that — though a Pixel Tablet 2 is under the works — there will be no third tablet.Multiple industry sources close to the project have confirmed that the device, internally known as “Kiyomi,” will not be moving forward.
According to sources familiar with the matter, Google made this decision last week, with internal communications and meetings taking place to inform the teams involved. The personnel previously assigned to the Pixel Tablet 3 project are being redirected to other initiatives within the company.
Pixel Tablet 2 is presumably too far into development to quit cold turkey which is why it will allegedly come out next year. However, there’s no saying how long support for it will last if Google has given up on the entire thing.
The Pixel Tablet — something that sounds so appealing on paper — didn’t turn out to be the high-end Android experience we hoped for. Google’s newest tablet, while not bad per se, was nothing special either. The 60 Hz display in particular made it feel very outdated, a problem that is also present on the iPhone 16.
However, instead of working towards improving it and making it the Android contender we need, Google simply abandoning it.As it stands The Pixel Tablet was marketed as some “premium” tablet from Google, when in reality, it looked a lot like a cheap tablet from Five Below. It was pretty cheap compared to other premium tablets like the iPad Air and iPad Pro, as well as Samsung’s Galaxy Tab S series.And Google really can’t charge Apple prices because Android, unlike iOS, isn’t exclusive to Pixel.
This effectively means that the Pixel Tablet 2, when it launches next year, will be a lame duck tablet.
Xiaomi has started teasing the first international release of the Redmi Note 14 Pro Plus. Seemingly, the IP69 certified handset will be launching alongside the Redmi Note 14 and Redmi Note 14 Pro with quite a few changes from the current Redmi Note 13 series.
For context, the company kicked off the series in September by releasing the following Redmi Note 14 smartphones:
The Redmi Note 14 series launched in China boasts an array of features designed to cater to various consumer needs. All three models are equipped with a 6.67-inch OLED display, offering a 120Hz refresh rate for a smooth and immersive viewing experience.
Under the hood, the Redmi Note 14 is powered by a MediaTek Dimensity 7025 Ultra chipset. Meanwhile, the Pro variants showcase more advanced configurations, with the Redmi Note 14 Pro running on a Dimensity 7300 Ultra processor and the Pro+ variant featuring the Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 chipset.
Photography enthusiasts can expect high-quality imaging capabilities across the range. Both the Pro and Pro+ models include a 50MP primary sensor paired with an 8MP ultrawide lens. However, the Pro+ distinguishes itself further with a 50MP portrait telephoto camera, while the Pro opts for a 2MP macro lens.
Battery performance is another highlight. The Note 14 Pro+ is equipped with a robust 6,200mAh battery supporting 90W fast charging, ensuring quick top-ups for users on the go. On the other hand, the Note 14 Pro houses a 5,500mAh battery with 44W fast charging capabilities.
Please be aware that these are all 5G models. However, recent leaks suggest that there will be 4G variants too, though, to replace the Redmi Note 13 Pro 4G. Recently, Xiaomi confirmed that it would be unveiling the Redmi Note 14 series internationally, despite having introduced predecessors only earlier this year. Now, it seems that the company is ready to reveal more details about this release.
Xiaomi has now revealed that the Redmi Note 14 series will land in India on December 9. As expected, Xiaomi will expand Redmi Note 14, Redmi Note 14 Pro and Redmi Note 14 Pro Plus availability to India first before offerign the devices to other markets.Potentially, launches in US and other markets are not that far behind, though. Xiaomi has not confirmed as much just yet, though.