That was fast, the freshly-announced Realme 9 is now at HQ and we unboxed it for you.
This is the 4G version with a Snapdragon 680 chip, 108MP main camera, and 5,000mAh, which starts at EUR280 for the baseline 6/128GB trim and in our case comes in this very lovely Sunburst Gold.
Adherent to Realme’s usual high standards, the Realme 9 comes well-supplied with a SIM tool, USB cable, 33W charger, and a case.
The phone has the distinct Realme design, shared by recent models with a mostly flat, all-display front, and a dazzling finish under the rear panel. Sunburst Gold’s sand-dune and wrinkled silk effects are possible, if you will pardon my imaginative leap. It tricks the eye that there’s an uneven feel to the flat surface. What’s more impressive is just how vivid the yellow of the rear panel becomes when hit straight on with light.
Realme 9
Specs-wise, the Realme 9 is an overachiever for its price tag. It brings a 6. 4-inch AMOLED of 90Hz refresh rate, and three rear cameras, of which two are useful – the 108MP main shooter, and an 8MP ultrawide. The battery is a great-sized 5,000mAh pack, there’s ample 128GB storage that can be further expanded through the microSD slot. There’s a second SIM slot – what’s not to like?
A nice little bonus of the Realme 9 design, the three lens barrels on the rear are visible through the frosted-glass-like surface of the camera island.
Anyway, it’s busy times here at GSMArena HQ so be patient and we’ll bring you all the review content you could wish for in the weeks to come.
Dying Light 2 Stay Human’s story DLC delayed to September
Techland has delayed Dying Light 2Stay Human‘s upcoming story add-on until September, the developer announced Thursday. The original release was scheduled for early summer.
Dying Light 2 was released in February, and praised as a solid “7/10 game” with great parkour. A huge patch was issued in April, in which Techland added fixes for multiplayer and single-player modes alongside a New Game+ mode. A new event called “In the Footsteps of a Nightrunner” will be featured in the game. There is also a photo mode that will soon follow. The first major story DLC is still to come.
Techland issued a statement to its fans via news release :
Your feedback is our number one priority. That’s why, at Techland, we strive to be as open and as honest with you as possible.
In the past few months we’ve focused our efforts on adding your favorite features such as New Game + mode and FOV sliders for consoles. We also made many improvements to co-op. On top of that, in June, we will introduce the first game Chapter entitled “In the Footsteps of a Nightrunner,” filled with content and events, as well as the highly anticipated photo mode.
However, it took us a while to complete the first story DLC. It is currently scheduled to release in September.
We apologize for any inconvenience caused, but our fans and gamers deserve unforgettable experiences.
We want your first major story DLC meeting all of your expectations. This means giving it the highest polish. Thank you for your trust and support.
Pokémon Home gets Arceus, Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl update
Pokémon Home will finally be compatible with Pokémon Legends: Arceus, as well as Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Pokémon Shining Pearl. The Pokémon Company announced the long-awaited update via a news release on Thursday.
An exact release date for the update wasn’t listed alongside the new information — just that it will “soon arrive.” Polygon has reached out to The Pokémon Company for more information.
Pokémon players have been eagerly waiting for information on Pokémon Home; Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl were released in November 2021, followed by Legends: Arceus in January 2022, but the cloud-based storage and trading system remained incompatible with all those games for some time.
Confused on transfers? This should help.Image: The Pokémon Company/Nintendo
“For example, you will be able to take a Pikachu that you caught in Pokémon Sword or Pokémon Shield into Pokémon Legends: Arceus, Pokémon Brilliant Diamond, or Pokémon Shining Pearl,” The Pokémon Company wrote. “Please note that transferring Pokémon to a game they were not originally caught in may cause certain changes to known moves, level, and what type of Poké Ball they were caught in.”
That means that Pokémon moves could change when transferred into Home and then onto other games. The details here are vague, but Pokémon experts over at Serebii are quickly figuring out details from pre-release, Japanese versions of the app: Despite the moves not transferring, they’ll stay “connected” to to Pokémon, meaning that if they’re returned to the game they were caught in, they’ll retain original moves — regardless of whether they learned anything in their trip into another game, according to Serebii.
You’ll also notice that Pokémon transferred from Legends: Arceus will appear in new Poké Balls when transferred. Poké Balls as we know them today didn’t exist in that game, so anything transferred to or from Legends: Arceus will appear in a green Strange Ball.
As part of the update, The Pokémon Company is adding Pokedex from each of the games alongside the National Pokédex.
Lastly, The Pokémon Company is awarding Pokémon Home users with free Pokémon: Turtwig, Chimchar, Piplup, Rowlet, Cyndaquil, and Oshawatt. Here’s how to get them, straight from the company:
When you deposit a Pokémon from Pokémon Brilliant Diamond or Pokémon Shining Pearl to the Nintendo Switch version of Pokémon HOME, you will receive Turtwig, Chimchar, and Piplup with Hidden Abilities as Mystery Gifts in the mobile device version of Pokémon Home.
If you deposit a Pokémon from Pokémon Legends: Arceus into the Nintendo Switch version of Pokémon Home, you will receive Rowlet, Cyndaquil, and Oshawott with maximum effort levels as Mystery Gifts in the mobile device version of Pokémon Home.
The Pokémon Home app was released in 2020, replacing the Pokémon Bank app used for the Nintendo 3DS Pokémon games. Pokémon Bank creatures can be transferred to Pokémon Bank, but not the other way around.
As feared, EU CSAM scanning law could outlaw end-to-end encryption of messages
We learned yesterday that a proposed new EU CSAM scanning law for tech giants would force Apple to revisit its own plans for detecting child sexual abuse materials. The company had quietly set these aside in response to a huge amount of controversy over its proposed approach.
Many had feared that the proposed law would involve yet another assault on end-to-end encrypted messaging, and this has now been confirmed by wording in the document …
Background
There’s no question that there is a large-scale problem with child sexual abuse materials. The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) said that it last year received 29.3M reports, almost all of which came from ISPs and cloud companies as a result of CSAM scanning on their servers.
The question is how best to tackle this, without invading the privacy of innocent users. Apple last year thought it had solved this problem. It announced plans for on-device scanning in a way that meant only confirmed matches would ever be viewed by a human moderator.
However, experts and privacy campaigners quickly pointed out four problems with Apple’s approach. The company found a solution to one of these – accidental false positives – by setting a threshold of 30+ images for a report to be filed. The three other problems remain.
Proposed EU CSAM scanning law
The European Union yesterday published the draft of a new law that would require tech giants to conduct CSAM scanning. This requirement extends not just to detecting CSAM images but also grooming attempts, which would require scanning of text.
This is not currently possible with iMessage, nor other apps like WhatsApp, which use end-to-end encryption.
All of your WhatsApp photos, iMessage texts, and Snapchat videos could be scanned to check for child sexual abuse images and videos under newly proposed European rules. The plans, experts warn, may undermine the end-to-end encryption that protects billions of messages sent every day and hamper people’s online privacy […]
Under the plans, tech companies—ranging from web hosting services to messaging platforms—can be ordered to “detect” both new and previously discovered CSAM, as well as potential instances of “grooming.” The detection could take place in chat messages, files uploaded to online services, or on websites that host abusive material […]
The European proposal to scan people’s messages has been met with frustration from civil rights groups and security experts, who say it’s likely to undermine the end-to-end encryption that’s become the default on messaging apps such as iMessage, WhatsApp, and Signal.
“Incredibly disappointing to see a proposed EU regulation on the internet fail to protect end-to-end encryption,” WhatsApp head Will Cathcart tweeted. “This proposal would force companies to scan every person’s messages and put EU citizens’ privacy and security at serious risk.” Any system that weakens end-to-end encryption could be abused or expanded to look for other types of content, researchers say.
Legislators have persisted in calling for backdoors into E2E encrypted messages, consistently failing to understand that it’s a technological impossibility. As University of Surrey cybersecurity professor Alan Woodward puts it: “You either have E2EE or you don’t.”
Woodward does note that there is a possible workaround: on-device scanning, after the message has been decrypted. But that it precisely the same approach Apple proposed to use for CSAM scanning, and which led to such a furore about the potential for abuse by repressive governments.
Realme 9 and 9 5G come to Europe joined by Pad Mini
Realme capped off yet another round of announcements with the Realme 9, Realme 9 5G and Realme Pad Mini launch for Europe. The regular Realme 9 is the same phone that was previously launched in India with a 6.4-inch 90Hz AMOLED, Snapdragon 680 and a 108MP main cam. Realme Pad Mini is also unchanged with its 8.7-inch LCD, Unisoc T616 chipset and 6,400 mAh battery. Realme 9 5G for Europe however is not the same device as the model launched in India back in March.
The EU Realme 9 5G gets a Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 695 instead of the Dimensity 810 used on the India version. Another difference comes in the slightly larger 6.6-inch LCD which also boasts a faster 120Hz refresh rate.
Realme 9 5G (Europe) key specs
The back gets a 50MP main cam, up from the 48MP module on the Indian Realme 9 5G alongside the 2MP macro and depth modules. The rest of the specs include a 5,000 mAh battery with 18W charging, Android 12 with Realme UI 3.0 on top and a side-mounted fingerprint.
Realme Pad Mini
Realme 9 starts at €280 for the baseline 6/128GB trim while its 5G counterpart is €260 in its 4/64GB trim. Both handsets are also coming to the UK starting on May 17 with matching £250 starting prices. Realme Pad Mini in its Wi-Fi only 3/32GB trim is going for €180 while the 4/64GB LTE model will set you back €230.
Perhaps the biggest hurdle to miniatures gaming is getting those miniatures painted in the first place. Tournaments will often require that your minis be painted before you can even participate, and everyone likes to see their Skaven or their Space Marines looking their best before taking the field. But while there are ways to scrimp and save on the minis themselves — 3D printing chief among them — often your time is the most precious resource of all. So what if there were a way to paint miniatures faster? Allow me to introduce you to the “slapchop” method.
Slapchop was the subject of a delightful little YouTube video from the team over at The Honest Wargamer last month, which only trickled into my feed a few weeks ago. In it, founder Rob Symes makes some very salient points while gently taking the piss out of an assortment of over-serious YouTube painting tutorials making the rounds at the moment.
As Symes points out, a given army has a very limited shelf life before it loses whatever slight advantages it might have had in the overall meta. Once you’ve put down the money on some new miniatures that you’d like to use, the clock is already ticking down to the moment they get nerfed. That makes getting them painted and ready to play an urgent necessity.
For the slapchop method, Symes has folded together the heavy drybrush technique made popular by the team at Artis Opus and the newly-released Citadel Contrast and Army Painter Speedpaint lines of specialty paint. The drybrush is used to create a high-contrast basecoat, and the Contrast/Speedpaint does its thing — providing a nuanced layer of color and a highlight in a single coat. Done with grace and precision, the results look fantastic.
Will this method win you a Golden Demon any time soon? No. No, it will not. Will your miniatures look like they’ve been kissed by a fey creature, granted a light pastel tinge, and sent to an Easter picnic? Maybe. Depends on the colors you choose, really. But will you get that army painted faster than ever before? Yes. Yes, you absolutely will. And later on, if the mood strikes you, you can go back and paint over those few units that really catch your fancy using all the other elaborate tools in your toolbox — thinks like wet blending and edge highlighting and all that other stuff that takes hours and weeks at a time.
At the end of the day, quantity has its own quality, as they say. The phrase is commonly used to refer to the number of fully painted miniatures you’re able to put on the table. But it’s just as true of the number of games you actually get to play before your army goes out of style. So, get crackin’.
[U]: Apple sold out of last iPods ever, here’s where you can still buy an iPod touch
After Apple announced it is discontinuing the iPod touch (7th generation) yesterday and retiring the iPod altogether, consumers have been rushing to retailers in-store and online to buy one of these devices. The product is only being sold at retailers while supplies last.
While we don’t have exact inventory counts, here’s what we know is in stock. We’ll continue to update periodically as inventory changes.
Best Buy is sold out of all of the 32GB options with the exception of the Space Gray model. For 128GB, you can still buy a Blue and a Space Gray. Please note that the Space Gray options are a bit more expensive than the other colors at Best Buy. Additionally, all of the 256GB models are out of stock.
Best Buy includes three months of Apple TV+, six months of Apple Music, and six months of Apple News+ for free when you purchase an iPod touch. Each subscription is for new subscribers only.
Target
Target only has a 32GB option available for both the Blue and Space Gray models. Every other iPod touch is sold out.
For new subscribers, Target does offer four months of Apple Music for free through its Target Circle program.
Walmart
Walmart is where you’ll find some of the best prices for an iPod touch. 32GB is no longer available in Blue or (PRODUCT)RED. The 128GB is available in Space Gray and Pink. Walmart is entirely sold out of 256GB options as those seem to be the most popular models at many retailers.
Amazon
The iPod touch is currently listed as a best seller on Amazon and there’s even a 5% discount on what’s available. The 32GB is available in only Space Gray and Pink.
Must-have accessories for your iPod touch
2 in 1 Shockproof iPod Case with Screen Protectors
(2 Pack) Tempered Glass Screen Protector
ULAK Case Bag
Keep in mind, inventory at these retailers will change throughout the day and we will continue to keep you updated on where to buy an iPod touch.
Pixel 6a and Pixel 7 cement Google’s design language
The smartphone market is often characterized as fast-paced, frantic, and whimsical, with features and designs getting changed almost every year. While that helps keep products look fresh and allows companies to experiment with new ideas faster, it also makes it difficult for people to form familiarity and confidence in these products. Apple is the lone exception, as always, and sticks to its designs longer to build brand loyalty. Other manufacturers have started to realize the wisdom of staying put, even just for two generations or three, especially when they come across a design style that uniquely works for them. That seems to be the case with Google’s latest generation of Pixel devices, establishing what will hopefully be Google’s signature look until 2024 at least.
Even before Google launched the Pixel 6 last year, the designs that were leaked already sparked interest and praise across the Interwebs. The form was unique, non-conformist, and quirky, traits that could be used to describe Google or at least Google in its youth. Just like the first Google Pixel phone, the new Pixel 6 design exuded a more humane and approachable appearance that belied that hard power that is crammed inside the phone.
The Pixel 6 continues this aesthetic with almost no modification. It has the exact same visor-like camera bump and dual-tone color split. The only difference, which most people might not know, is that the camera bump is always black, no matter the colorway you pick. More importantly, however, the Pixel 6a also partakes in most of the same hardware, particularly the Tensor processor, that the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro use at a more approachable $449 price tag.
Perhaps trying to beach leaks to the punch, Google uncharacteristically also revealed the design of the Pixel 7, which looks a lot like the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro, too. There are more visible differences now, with the camera lenses visibly separate from the rest of the camera bump and a more uniform color scheme. Despite those modifications, it’s not hard to pick out the Pixel 7 from a lineup, at least if it’s face down and showing its unique back.
The Pixel Buds Pro does deviate a bit from Google’s earbuds design for the past year or so. Whereas the Pixel Buds 2 and Pixel Buds A both sport “wings” to aid in fitting the buds into ears, the Pixel Buds Pro’s shell is more streamlined and more refined. Just like their predecessors, the buds come with a vertically oriented charging case, and just like their predecessors, it carries a dual-tone color scheme. All color options have a black body and differ only in the outer touch surface.
Google is clearly aiming for a more consistent and more identifiable branding with its latest products, and hopefully, that will continue to be the case even after the Pixel 7 launches later this year. The one outlier, however, seems to be the still-unnamed Pixel tablet that will launch in 2023, though there’s hope that Google will change directions before then. A bit more interesting will be the Pixel Watch, Google’s first-ever first-party smartwatch, with a design that some have already mocked as a “round Apple Watch.” It does fit in with Google’s use of smooth, curved surfaces and the duality of colors and materials, but we’ll have to wait until Fall to see who it plays in practice.
Apple supplier Foxconn warns of slowing demand, and growing supply problems
Foxconn, a key supplier to Apple today warned that the quarter’s revenue may slip due to slowing demand as well growing supply-chain issues.
The chairman of Foxconn stated that many market uncertainties exist and that Foxconn will be seeking to diversify further to decrease its dependency on the smartphone assembly business.
Foxconn warns that its current quarter revenue from electronics, including smartphones, could drop as growth slows amid rising inflation and cooling demand. This is partly due to China’s lockdowns.
The largest contract electronics manufacturer in the world, Taiwanese, is facing a serious shortage of chips, just like global producers. This has hampered smartphone production, including that for major client Apple […]
“There is a lot of uncertainty in the market right now,” Foxconn chairman Liu Young-way said during a call after earnings. He cited the pandemic and geopolitical risk as well as inflation for this year.
“They are presenting quite some challenges to demand and supply,” Liu said […]
The predictions reinforce the urgency for Foxconn to reduce its reliance on smartphones and consumer electronics, which make up slightly more than half of its total revenue, and diversify into areas such as electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing which it sees as a $34 billion business by 2025.
Apple had been trying to get ahead of further COVID-19 lockdowns by asking Foxconn to recruit iPhone 14 assembly workers earlier than usual, but that plan had to be abandoned almost immediately when “iPhone City” went into lockdown.
There is growing unrest in China at the severity of lockdown measures. Last week saw hundreds of MacBook Pro workers breaking through COVID-19 barriers intended to keep them inside a Chinese plant.
Apple has already warned that a range of problems could cost the company as much as $8B this quarter. The bigger concern, however, will be the impact to both supply and demand of the iPhone 14. While many factors are entirely outside Apple’s control, it’s massive dependance on China is a much longer-term structural problem for the company – and one we’ve been warning about for many years.
We’ve always acknowledged that Apple couldn’t act overnight, and the company has made progress over the years in diversifying its manufacturing and assembly processes, but the pace of this has been glacial. It’s now been five years since even outside commentators could see the writing on the wall, and the Cupertino company still seems reluctant to take decisive action.
Foxconn has itself been diversifying production, including a recent plan for a $9B plant in Saudi Arabia.
According to The Wall Street Journal’s new report, the Saudi government “reviews a Foxconn offer for a multipurpose facility that could produce microchips and electric-vehicle parts as well as other electronic devices like displays .”
The report explains that Foxconn, formally known as Hon Hai Precision Industry, is looking to diversify its manufacturing presence due to “rising tensions between China and the U.S. that put it in a potentially vulnerable spot.” In addition to a factory in Saudi Arabia, Foxconn is also reportedly in talks with the United Arab Emirates regarding the same project.
Vodafone Group and Three UK are in talks of a merger according to a recent report from the Financial Times. Based on information from people close to the matter, the two telecoms are looking to form a larger network in a bid to take on the UK’s other two dominant players – EE and Virgin Media O2. Vodafone is the UK’s third-largest mobile operator while Three currently occupies the fourth spot.
The proposed merger is yet to be commented on by either Vodafone or Three. Analysts suggest that neither firm has the capital to directly buy out the other so a joint-venture is the most likely outcome. It remains to be seen how and if the financial aspects will be worked out. The combined entity will accelerate 5G network rollout in the UK in a bid to benefit consumers. The new report also mentions that a similar merger plan was discussed last year though it ultimately fell through.
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