Apple is reportedly preparing to launch Apple Pay in India

Apple has been looking to launch its payment feature called Apple Pay in India for some time now but it hasn't successfully negotiated the terms with local authorities. Well, according to people familiar with the matter, the company is again in talks with the local regulatory bodies, specifically, the NPCI - a special division of India's central bank Reserve Bank of India. Currently, all payment methods in the country work atop of the UPI, which is a popular payment method in South Asian markets. Walmart's PhonePe, Google's GPay and Paytm are all compliant with UPI and work in...

OnePlus Nord Buds 2R set to launch on July 5

OnePlus is gearing up to launch an even more affordable entry-level version of the Nord Buds 2 dubbed Nord Buds 2R on July 5. The earbuds already have their landing page on Amazon India and will bring the same basic design as the Nord Buds 2 but presumably without active noise cancelation to keep their price down. OnePlus Nord Buds 2R launch poster Buds 2R will be available in blue and black colors and may launch with an INR 2,000 price tag based on rumors. OnePlus will reveal more teasers in the coming days which should clear up the specs department. We’re also expecting a launch...

FTC: Microsoft-Activision Blizzard deal should remain blocked for now

Microsoft finds itself in yet another legal hurdle as the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has appealed for an injunction to temporarily block its $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard. The FTC appealed the decision to block the proposed Microsoft-Activision merger in federal court citing potential harm to competition in the console, cloud gaming and gaming subscription sectors. The FTC’s in-house court needs more time to assess the situation and rule whether the merger would be detrimental to consumers. This is not the first instance of regulators being hesitant to give...

Asus Zenfone 10's specs surface with more renders confirm 3.5mm headphone jack

Renders of the Asus Zenfone 10 that leaked last week revealed its design and color options. Now a new set of Zenfone 10's images have surfaced, corroborating the previous week's leak and confirming the presence of a 3.5mm headphone jack - a feature uncommon on flagships these days. Asus hasn't detailed the Zenfone 10's specs sheet, but it has confirmed that the smartphone will come with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC, a 5.9" screen, wireless charging, and a second-gen six-axis gimbal stabilization. Asus Zenfone 10 The source claims the Asus Zenfone 10 will pack a 5.9" AMOLED panel...

Sony will keep making smartphones for multiple years to come Qualcomm reveals

Sony has been making some incredibly intriguing smartphones lately, but it hasn't been selling very many of them. Naturally, that may make you wonder whether the Japanese electronics giant would just, at some point, decide to cut its losses and exit the smartphone business altogether, following in the footsteps of the likes of LG and HTC. The answer is no. Sony will keep making Android smartphones for multiple years to come. The revelation comes from a rather unlikely source - Qualcomm. Sony Xperia 1 V The chip maker has announced in a new press release today that it has extended...

vivo Y36 makes it to India

vivo's new Y36 initially appeared in Indonesia last month, and today it has finally landed in India as well. We're talking about the 4G version, powered by the Snapdragon 680 SoC. It's now available from vivo's own Indian e-store, as well as Flipkart and offline retail stores. The price is INR 16,999, and there's just one model, with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, which you can have in Vibrant Gold and Meteor Black colorways. vivo Y36 in Meteor Black The vivo Y36 has a 6.64-inch 1080x2388 LCD touchscreen with 90 Hz refresh rate and 650-nit peak brightness, microSD card...

Qualcomm expands S3 Gen 2 sound platform with ultra-low 20 ms latency

Qualcomm announced it is expanding the S3 Gen 2 Sound with optimized latency that goes below 20 ms for “lag-free gaming audio.” Manufacturers can also utilize the platform to add Auracast broadcast audio functionality to dongles and adapters with source devices such as phones, laptops, and TVs. The enhanced solution is optimized for gaming, revealed the official press release. It is a combination of Snapdragon Sound and LE Audio. It delivers “ultra-low latency of 20 less than 20 ms”, and it can get even further reduced with the source device delivering game audio only. Music listeners...