 "Tech wrap Jul 16: OnePlus Nord 4, iOS 18 Public Beta, Dell AI laptops, more")
China’s OnePlus on July 16 launched the Nord 4 smartphone at its Summer Launch event, which was held in Milan, Italy. The smartphone boasts a metallic unibody design, but most importantly a suite of artificial intelligence features for media editing, audio transcriptions, text generation, and text summarisation. OnePlus stated that some of the AI features it previewed at the launch will arrive through firmware update later this year.
OnePlus on July 16 launched the Pad 2 at its Summer Launch event held in Milan, Italy. The second-generation tablet from the Chinese electronics maker is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, thereby bringing artificial intelligence features for improved productivity experience. Like the first-generation model, the Pad 2 is offered in Wi-Fi connectivity, but with the option for cellular data sharing when paired and connected with a supported OnePlus smartphone. The tablet also boasts connect sync feature, which simplifies data sharing with supported OnePlus devices. Alongside the Pad 2, OnePlus introduced the supported accessories such as the Stylo 2 and the OnePlus Smart Keyboard.
OnePlus introduced the Watch 2r and Nord Buds 3 Pro wireless earbuds on July 16, alongside the Nord 4 and Pad 2 devices. OnePlus said the Watch 2r is a lighter and more accessible smartwatch, powered by Google’s Wear OS. The OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro, meanwhile, features Active Noise Cancelling (ANC) and a 12.4 mm titanised audio driver for clear sound quality.
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Apple has released the first public beta of its upcoming iOS 18 operating system to eligible iPhones. The public beta offers early preview of upcoming apps, features, and technologies from Apple. In the first public beta, Apple previews lock screen customisation options, new control centre features, upgraded Messages app, and a redesigned Photos app.
Dell on July 16 launched its maiden Copilot Plus AI PCs in India, powered by the Qualcomm's Snapdragon X Elite and Snapdragon X Plus chips. The new Dell XPS 13 and Inspiron 14 Plus laptops are the first by US-based PC maker based on Microsoft's new Copilot Plus PC platform, which brings exclusive artificial intelligence features. The new platform leverages the integrated Neural Processing Unit (NPU) of the Qualcomm processors for processing artificial intelligence workloads.
Apple has introduced the HomePod mini in midnight colour, made with 100 per cent recycled mesh fabric. Priced at Rs 10,990, the HomePod mini in midnight is available for pre-order, with sale set to commence from July 17. The Siri-powered smart speaker has previously been offered in other colours such as yellow, orange, blue, and white. The new midnight colour is in addition to these colours.
Apple is reportedly adding a new "Recovered" Photo album to the iPhone’s Photos app with the iOS 18 update. According to 9To5Mac, Apple has started rolling out the new feature to the beta version of iOS 18. This feature will enable users to see and recover previously damaged or lost images that are still stored on the device’s internal storage.
China's Lenovo announced a new addition to its tablet portfolio, the Lenovo Tab Plus. This Android tablet boasts an eight-speaker audio system, which it said is developed in collaboration with American audio brand JBL. The audio system supports Dolby Atmos and high-res audio (24-bit and 96kHz frequency) when using headphones.
Amazon Prime Day is here, and experts are reminding consumers to be wary of scams.
As many as 20 Starlink satellites are doomed to fall through the atmosphere and burn up as the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket has left them in a lower-than-intended orbit.
India’s top smartphone brands — Apple, Samsung, Google Pixel, Oppo, and Xiaomi — have introduced AI-powered features over the past year and a half. Google launched Gemini, Samsung unveiled Galaxy AI, and Apple released Apple Intelligence. Oppo and Xiaomi, based in China, are also integrating similar AI technologies into their devices.