iPhone Assembler Foxconn in Talks With TSMC and TMH to Set Up Semiconductor Fabrication Units in India: Report

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July 14, 2023

iPhone Assembler Foxconn in Talks With TSMC and TMH to Set Up Semiconductor Fabrication Units in India: Report

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Foxconn is in talks with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) and Japan’s TMH Group for technology and joint venture partnerships to start semiconductor fabrication units in India, the Economic Times reported on Friday.

Meanwhile, the Gujarat government is holding talks with Foxconn over a semiconductor plant, a top government official told Reuters, days after the Taiwanese giant broke off a joint-venture plan with Vedanta.

“We are in touch with multiple prospective investors, including Foxconn … Gujarat is uniquely positioned to attract top chipmakers,” said Vijay Nehra, secretary of the science and technology department in Gujarat. Foxconn this week exited its project with Vedanta, which was also planned for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state of Gujarat, citing issues such as slow progress.

The breakup of the JV was a setback for PM Modi’s vision to establish India as a semiconductor manufacturing hub. However, Foxconn said later it would apply for India chip incentives on its own and was exploring new partners. Foxconn did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Reuters is first to report its talks with Gujarat. PM Modi wants to make chipmaking a top priority in pursuit of a “new era” in electronics manufacturing, but his plan has so far floundered.

Three companies applied for incentives last year – the Vedanta-Foxconn JV, Singapore-based IGSS Ventures and global consortium ISMC, which counts Tower Semiconductor as a tech partner — but so far no deal has been sealed.

Explaining the Vedanta split on Tuesday, Foxconn said “there was recognition from both sides that the project was not moving fast enough” and there were other “challenging gaps we were not able to smoothly overcome”, without giving more details.

V. Lee, Foxconn’s representative in India, wrote on LinkedIn: “Sometimes, you will fly higher when in solo.” Its talks with Gujarat come weeks after Micron said it will invest up to $825 million (nearly Rs. 6,800 crore) in a semiconductor testing and packaging facility in the state.

© Thomson Reuters 2023

Will the Nothing Phone 2 serve as the successor to the Phone 1, or will the two co-exist? We discuss the company’s recently launched handset and more on the latest episode of Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.

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Apple MacBook Air 15 (M2, 2023) Review: Big Air for Those Who Won’t Go Pro

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hitesh

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July 13, 2023

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Apple MacBook Air 15 (M2, 2023) Review: Big Air for Those Who Won’t Go Pro

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Apple has a diverse and rather powerful range of Mac computers, but the star of the lineup has arguably been the MacBook Air range. Introduced rather iconically when Steve Jobs pulled it out of a manila envelope in 2008, the MacBook Air has gone on to become one of Apple’s most popular Mac products — not just for its size and slimness, but also because it’s usually been the entry-level laptop in the brand’s laptop range over the years. It has also become the ideal ‘small laptop’ for most users who aren’t necessarily looking for a very powerful or expensive work machine.

In 2020, Apple introduced the first MacBook Air with its own M1 SoC, and followed up in 2022 with the redesigned version featuring the M2 processor. In both of these cases, the MacBook Air remained around the 13-inch mark for screen size, although the 2022 version did implement design changes that made it more closely resemble the more expensive MacBook Pro devices.

Skip forward to 2023, and we have the new Apple MacBook Air 15, which was launched at WWDC 2023. As the number suggests, it’s the biggest MacBook Air yet with a 15.3-inch screen, although it maintains the slim and lightweight form factor, and same battery life that the Air range has been known for. Powered by the Apple M2 SoC and with a starting price of Rs. 1,34,900 in India, this laptop may not strictly feel like a MacBook Air, but promises a big screen experience and capable performance nonetheless. Here’s my review of the new Apple MacBook Air 15 (M2, 2023).

Apple MacBook Air 15 (M2, 2023) price in India and variants

The Apple MacBook Air 15 starts at Rs. 1,34,900 in India which comes with the M2 processor (8-core CPU and 10-core GPU), 8GB of unified memory, and 256GB of SSD storage. Buyers can choose between a 35W dual USB Type-C power adapter or a 70W power adapter with a single USB Type-C port, at no extra cost. Colour options include Midnight, Starlight, Space Grey, and Silver.

The review unit sent by Apple came in the Midnight colour with 16GB of unified memory, 512GB of SSD storage, and the 35W dual USB Type-C power adapter, priced at Rs. 1,74,900 in India. You can choose to have up to 24GB of unified memory and 2TB of SSD storage — this top-end configuration is priced at Rs. 2,54,900. Keep in mind that memory and storage are not upgradeable, so choose the variant that you expect will suit your requirements even going forward.

Apple MacBook Air 15 (M2, 2023) design

With the launch of the 13-inch M2-powered MacBook Air in 2022, the range went in a different design direction, more closely resembling the current-generation MacBook Pro laptops. This involves a flatter, more slab-like form, rather than the sharp edges and gentle curves of older MacBook Air laptops. The larger size of the 15-inch MacBook Air ensures that it looks even more like the MacBook Pro than before, sitting perfectly in between the 14-inch and 16-inch variants of the Pro range.

That said, the slimness that has always been a defining cue of the Air range has been retained on the 15-inch MacBook Air; the laptop is visibly slimmer and lighter than the Pro range, and has a claimed thickness of 11.5mm. The MacBook Air 15 is about 90g lighter than the 14-inch MacBook Pro (2023), despite being a bit larger.

Apple touts this as the world’s thinnest 15-inch laptop. However, despite the undeniable slimness and lower weight, the large screen makes the laptop a bit unwieldy for a one-handed grip. While I often carried my old MacBook Air (2017) around with just one hand holding the corner with the lid open, that isn’t an easy thing to do with the MacBook Air 15.

The 15.3-inch screen on the new MacBook Air is big and sharp, maintaining the same pixel density as the 13-inch variant despite the size increase

The borders around the screen are slim like on the rest of the current-generation MacBook range, and the display notch is present, making room for the 1080p camera. Although the notch has been around for a while and isn’t new, it does take a bit of getting used to if you’re upgrading from an older MacBook or any other laptop with a regular ‘notchless’ screen. MacOS is fortunately optimised to ensure the notch doesn’t really get in the way of anything, with apps working entirely below the notch.

The Midnight colour variant is the darkest of the four colour options, and its worth noting that this is a coat of paint on top of the natural colour of the aluminium, so even regular use could eventually cause some discolouration, especially around the edges. The finish also prominently shows any dust or fingerprint smudges anywhere on its surface, and I usually kept a small cloth handy at my work desk to wipe it clean (sometimes twice a day).

Interestingly, the pixel density of the MacBook Air 15 is identical to that of the smaller 13.6-inch M2 version, with both featuring a pixel density of around 224ppi. The 15-inch laptop has a screen resolution of 2880×1864 pixels and a peak brightness rating of 500 nits, so you’re getting a legitimately larger screen with no actual drawbacks in terms of detail and sharpness.

In every other way, the 15-inch Air is visually very similar to its more affordable 13-inch variant, including the lack of ‘MacBook Air’ branding and the ‘tall’ aspect ratio of the screen which ensures plenty of room for the keyboard and trackpad. There is a six-speaker system (up from four in the 13-inch MacBook Air), positioned just ahead of the hinge. It also sports the minimalist base with just four exposed screws, and a fanless design for silent operation even under heavy load.

The MacBook Air 15 has the MagSafe port for charging, two Thunderbolt/ USB Type-C ports, and a 3.5mm socket for headphone connectivity

As with the 13-inch MacBook Air, the 15-inch version has a MagSafe charging port and two Thunderbolt/ USB 4 ports on the left side, and the 3.5mm socket for headphone connectivity on the right side. These have a maximum bandwidth of 40Gbps, and usefully also support DisplayPort and charging, so you can use a USB Type-C charger as well. This might be useful for occasional fast charging, but you can stick to the MagSafe charging cable if you prefer, which also keeps both Thunderbolt/ USB ports free for other connectivity requirements.

The power button doubles up as a Touch ID sensor, which can be used to quickly authenticate your identity and give you access to the device instead of having to punch in your password. That said, you’ll have to use the password when you boot up after shutting down or restarting the laptop. Also worth noting is that the MacBook Air 15 boots up without having to press the power button when you open the lid, so you may not have to press the button too often.

Apple MacBook Air 15 (M2, 2023) specifications and software

Although Apple introduced the M2 SoC in 2022, it remains relevant and fairly capable even now, particularly for the company’s first tier of products. Apple has often stated that its M2 SoC is a significant step ahead of the company’s older Intel-based laptops, and its claimed to be more than enough for the daily requirements of most users, including offering capabilities that occasionally even process-heavy tasks such as video editing might require.

Like the 2022 MacBook Air, the 15-inch version features the Apple M2 with the same specifications, as well as the same hardware and software-level support. This includes an 8-core CPU, 10-core GPU, 100GB/s memory bandwidth, and support for up to 24GB of unified memory and up to 2TB of storage. Other useful specifications include support for Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.3. The battery is slightly larger than on the 13-inch M2 MacBook Air, but is said to be just enough to ensure similar battery life while powering the larger screen.

The power button on the MacBook Air 15 doubles up as the Touch ID sensor for biometric authentication

On the software front, the MacBook Air 15 ships with macOS Ventura, with the device running on version 13.4.1 for much of this review. Key features of Ventura include improvements for messaging, Stage Manager, Continuity Camera to use your iPhone as a camera for your MacBook, and a generally nicer look and feel than previous macOS versions. The device will receive the update to macOS Sonoma in due course.

Apple MacBook Air 15 (M2, 2023) performance and battery life

I have been using a MacBook Air (2017) as my daily driver for a few years now. While it’s still in usable shape, it’s definitely a whole lot less capable than it was when it was new, let alone being able to match up to modern requirements. For this reason, I quite looked forward to switching to the MacBook Air 15 as my primary work machine for a few weeks for this review.

My job doesn’t necessarily require a very powerful computer; much of my workflow involves browsing the Internet (albeit with multiple browsers and tabs running at any given time), reading and writing thousands of words a day, and running a few additional apps (such as Slack and Telegram) as needed.

On occasion, I need to edit images, record voice overs, or jump onto VoIP calls — all of which the MacBook Air 15 is stated to be more than capable enough to handle. Even if your workflow is a bit more intense involving occasional video editing or data crunching, the laptop should be able to handle the load. While 8GB of unified memory might be enough for most things, you might just want to invest in 16GB or 24GB to keep yourself future-ready.

The Midnight colour looks great but also attracts smudges quite easily. While the notch might appear awkward at first, you get used to it eventually

Connectivity options are fairly limited, with just the two Thunderbolt/ USB Type-C ports available. You’ll therefore need either the right adapters for different use cases (such as connecting to a projector or display), or a decent multi-port adapter to even allow for connecting older USB Type-A devices such as thumb drives and hard drives.

I’ve largely moved to a cloud-based workflow, so the connectivity limitations of the MacBook Air 15 didn’t really slow me down. The laptop fortunately managed to maintain a strong Wi-Fi connection where most of my other devices struggled, letting me work smoothly even when far away from the Wi-Fi router — a big improvement over my older MacBook Air functioning in the same conditions.

The keyboard, which is naturally a bit larger and better spread out than on 13-inch laptops, was a pleasure to type on, as was the larger trackpad to navigate and scroll with. The display was bright and good with the adaptive brightness, although there were a few occasions where it set the brightness too low and I had to manually increase it.

The six-speaker system worked well for watching videos and was quite loud when it needed to be, and also sounded quite sharp and clean for VoIP calls. The camera was good enough for most typical laptop needs such as video calls, but the ‘continuity camera’ feature on macOS Ventura can be used to improve your experience, if you have a compatible iPhone to use it with.

The 35W dual-port charger is a bit more practical, but you can choose the 70W single port charger for faster charging at no additional cost

Although both the MacBook Air 15 and the 13-inch variant running the M2 chip are meant to be identical in terms of performance, there were slight differences in the benchmark scores. The 15-inch laptop scored slightly better on most tests, likely because my review unit had 16GB of unified memory, as compared to 8GB of memory on the 13-inch variant which we reviewed in 2022.

On more intensive tests such as encoding a five-minute ProRes 4K (422 HQ) clip shot on an iPhone 13 Pro (Review) to 4K (H.264) and full-HD (H.264), there was practically no difference between the two machines.

Casual games from Apple Arcade ran without any trouble on the MacBook Air 15. The Steam version of city-building survival game Frostpunk ran smoothly enough as well. The MacBook Air is far from the ideal laptop for gaming, but it won’t let you down if you just need to blow off steam once in a while and play some games.

		MacBook Air 15 (M2) (10-core GPU, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD)	MacBook Air 13 (M2) (10-core GPU, 8GB RAM, 512GB SSD)
		MacBook Air 15 (M2) (10-core GPU, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD)	MacBook Air 13 (M2) (10-core GPU, 8GB RAM, 512GB SSD)
Blackmagic Disk Speed Test (higher is better)
5GB	Read	2921.9MB/s	2,703.7MB/s
5GB	Write	3398.6MB/s	2,405.7MB/s
1GB	Read	2934.1MB/s	2,824.3MB/s
1GB	Write	4066.8MB/s	3,032.7MB/s
Cinebench R23 (higher is better)
Single-core		1,600 pts	1,584 pts
Multi-core		7,993 pts	8,242 pts
Geekbench 6 (higher is better)
CPU (Apple silicon)	Single-core	2,577 pts	2,422 pts
CPU (Apple silicon)	Multi-core	9,973 pts	8,871 pts

Compute	Metal	45,825 pts	45,184 pts
Compute	OpenCL	27,941 pts	27,822 pts
Browser benchmarks (higher is better)
WebXprt 4		242 pts	201 pts
Basemark Web 3.0		1,626.8 pts	1,179.2 pts
Jetstream 2		235.4 pts	222.8 pts
Final Cut Pro (lower is better)
ProRes 4K (422 HQ) (28.3GB file)	to 1080p (H.264)	56 sec	54 sec
ProRes 4K (422 HQ) (28.3GB file)	to 4K (H.264)	3 min 1 sec	3 min 1 sec

The battery on the MacBook Air 15 is only slightly higher in capacity than the 13-inch variant, with the difference essentially only ensuring the larger screen is powered and the overall battery life is similar to that of the smaller variant. I was sometimes able to get through an entire work day of nine hours on a single charge with a bit left, but I found that this depends on ambient temperature to a fair extent.

In an air-conditioned office, my typical workflow usually got me through the day, while this figure dropped by a fair fraction in a non-air-conditioned home environment. Once the onset of the monsoon dropped citywide temperatures in Mumbai, battery life improved a bit. In general, I could count on the MacBook Air 15 to run for at least seven hours on a single charge. Gaming and frequent use of the speakers might affect these figures a fair bit, though.

Standby battery drain is negligible, and largely unnoticeable when going from the end of the work day to the beginning of the next work day. Charging with the 35W adapter is reasonably quick, going from 10 percent to around 35 percent in half an hour and 64 percent in one hour using the included MagSafe cable. This might slow down if you have a second cable attached to the adapter and another device charging. Alternatively, you can opt for the single-port 70W charging adapter for faster charging of the MacBook Air 15.

Although the size makes it a bit unwieldy, the MacBook Air 15 is the reasonably-priced, big-screen MacBook that the product lineup desperately needed

Verdict

When I first had a chance to try out the MacBook Air 15 at WWDC 2023, I was a bit confused with where exactly this laptop fit in. The Air range has always been compact, easy to handle, and convenient to slip into even a small handbag or backpack — so a device with a 15.3-inch screen doesn’t really fit these requirements.

That said, Apple’s MacBook range was missing a reasonably priced big-screen option; your only choice thus far was the 16-inch MacBook Pro, which is priced at Rs. 2,49,900 onwards and is probably too powerful for typical use cases and workflows. The MacBook Air 15 manages to fill that gap quite well, striking the right balance between size, capabilities, and price. The positioning of this laptop starts to make a lot more sense if you don’t think of it too much as an ‘Air’, but rather as the much-needed big-screen MacBook for the regular user.

Although it did feel unwieldy to carry with the lid open, the slimness and light weight will definitely be helpful in most portability scenarios. My typical workflow doesn’t require a large screen, but I did appreciate having it, particularly for the better visibility it offered with web browsers. Users who need to do work such as photo sorting and editing, working with presentations and spreadsheets, or sifting through lots of text or data will definitely like having the large screen, and the M2 SoC is enough to handle most everyday tasks.

Of course, if you don’t think you need the big screen, the MacBook Air (M2, 2022) (Review) is practically just as good in every way, much more compact, and considerably more affordable at Rs. 20,000 less than the 15-inch variant for the same specifications.

Apple unveiled its first mixed reality headset, the Apple Vision Pro, at its annual developer conference, along with new Mac models and upcoming software updates. We discuss all the most important announcements made by the company at WWDC 2023 on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.

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OnePlus Nord CE 5G Gets OxygenOS 13 F.50 Update in India, Comes With Latest Security Patch

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hitesh

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July 12, 2023

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OnePlus Nord CE 5G Gets OxygenOS 13 F.50 Update in India, Comes With Latest Security Patch

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OnePlus Nord CE 5G is getting updated to the OxygenOS 13 F.50 in India. The phone was launched in 2021, running Android 11-based OxygenOS 11 out-of-the-box. The latest OS update brings in the latest security patch, along with improved system security and other bugs fixes. The update is currently rolling out to users in India. It was first made available to a small percentage of OnePlus Nord CE 5G users in the country starting July 10 and will be expanded to more users gradually.

OnePlus announced the rollout of the latest software update on July 10 via its community page. The OxygenOS 13 F.50 update for OnePlus Nord CE 5G smartphones in India is rolling out to users in batches, bringing in July 2023 Android security patch and other upgrades. The latest security patch brings improved system security and stability. The OnePlus Nord CE 5G OS update comes with the firmware version EB2101_11.F.50.

The OxygenOS 13 F.50 on OnePlus Nord CE 5G is also said to bring fixes to the issues that cause the Home screen to stutter after being unlocked. It will also prevent the Photos app from crashing in certain scenarios, said the company.

Notably, OnePlus Nord CE 5G OxygenOS 13 F.50 is currently rolling out in India only. OnePlus said that the latest update will be rolled out in a gradual manner starting July 10. According to the company, a small percentage of users in the country would have got the update on the first day, with a wider rollout to follow.

Users can also check for the update manually by heading to the phone’s Settings app and installing it by selecting Software update >Download the update on their OnePlus Nord CE 5G.

Recently, OnePlus launched the OnePlus Nord CE 3 in India at its summer launch event. The smartphone is powered by a Snapdragon 782G SoC. It comes with a 6.7-inch fluid AMOLED display with 120Hz refresh rate. The OnePlus Nord CE 3 packs a triple camera unit, headlined by a 50-megapixel lens. It is equipped with a 5,000mAh battery with 80W SUPERVOOC charging support.

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Oppo Reno 10 Pro+ 5G Review: Meets Expectations, and a Bit More

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hitesh

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July 12, 2023

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Oppo Reno 10 Pro+ 5G Review: Meets Expectations, and a Bit More

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Oppo’s Reno series of phones has been struggling to make sense over the past few years, in my opinion. What started off as a mid-range series has now been elevated to the premium segment, with last year’s Reno 8 Pro 5G being priced above Rs. 45,000. Oppo’s biggest problem with the series was not its design or battery life, but more to do with the expected camera performance and processing power, both of which lacked a comparable punch versus other similarly priced products. This year, Oppo seems to have pushed this price bar even higher with its flagship Reno 10 Pro+ 5G, which is priced at Rs. 54,999.

Unlike the Oppo Reno 8 Pro 5G (Review), the new 10 Pro+ 5G packs a top-end processor and three very capable rear-facing cameras that tend to justify the price. However, is it a proper all-rounder fans of the brand have been waiting for, and does it make sense when compared to the competition?

Oppo Reno 10 Pro+ 5G design

Oppo isn’t new to the premium smartphone space and prior to the pandemic, we have seen some very interesting designs such as the original Find X, which took the pop-up selfie camera to new heights. There was also the Oppo Reno 2, which introduced a shark fin-style pop-up camera design.

With the Reno 10 Pro+ 5G, Oppo does not break any such design boundaries. The phone is available in two finishes – Glossy Purple and Silvery Grey. I received the latter, which has a smooth matte-finished rear panel, versus the purple variant’s high-gloss finish.

The Oppo Reno 10 Pro+ 5G uses curved-edge glass for its rear panel and display

Oppo keeps it clean and simple with the Reno 10 Pro+ 5G by going with a refined and polished design language, that is comfortable to hold. It has rounded corners, curved sides and a curved-edge display, all of which adds to its premium appeal. The display has AGC’s Dragontrail Star 2 cover glass, while the rear panel is made from Corning Gorilla Glass 5. The sandwiched frame, which is made from polycarbonate, feels quite premium in terms of fit and finish with no sharp edges near the various perforations and cutouts, and also helps keep this device feeling fairly light at 194g.

The rear camera module protrudes quite a bit and is a mix of aluminium and glass in a capsule shaped layout. There are three rear-facing cameras, stacked one below the other.

The Oppo Reno 10 Pro+ 5G’s matte-finished rear panel can get quite slippery

Both the display and the rear panel remained smudge-free during the review period. Given how slippery this particular rear panel is, I ended up using the camera bump for support when holding the phone up. The finely ridged metal surface surrounding the periscopic telephoto camera also helped to grip the phone better. I did find the Oppo Reno 10 Pro+ 5G a bit top-heavy and on occasion, it would tip over as well. Thankfully, Oppo bundles a grippy silicone case in the box for added protection.

While it all sounds great for a premium device, the Oppo Reno 10 Pro+ 5G does not pack an official IP rating, which is a bit disappointing as many mid-range and sub Rs. 40,000 devices launched in 2023 offer up to an IP68 rating.

Oppo Reno 10 Pro+ 5G specifications and software

The Oppo Reno 10 Pro+ 5G uses a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 SoC. The processor was introduced last year and has been succeeded by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, which has made an appearance in several premium devices this year. Unfortunately, the Reno 10 Pro+ 5G will have to deal with some criticism as its cousins from OnePlus and iQoo offer the newer processor at the same price point.

The Reno 10 Pro+ 5G has a 20.1:9 aspect ratio, 6.74-inch curved-edge OLED display with a 120Hz dynamic refresh rate. However, this isn’t of the LTPO variety (but LTPS) so the switching only takes place between 30Hz, 60Hz, 90Hz and 120Hz. The display has a resolution of 2,772 × 1,240 pixels offering a pixel density of 450ppi. Communication standards include Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.3, NFC, an infrared sensor (for the remote control function), and support for numerous 5G bands. The phone offers dual-SIM slots which can hold two nano-SIM cards but there is no SD card slot for expanding storage. There are stereo speakers, but the phone lacks a 3.5mm headphone jack.

The Oppo Reno 10 Pro+ 5G’s frame is made from polycarbonate

Adding to the list of hardware features that the Oppo Reno 10 Pro+ 5G lacks is wireless charging. The phone has a 4,700mAh battery which supports 100W wired charging. Unlike most manufacturers, Oppo does provide a charger in the box.

As for software, the Reno 10 Pro+ 5G ships with ColorOS 13.1 which is based on Android 13. During majority of the review period, our device was running the build number CPH2521_13.1.1.130 (EX01), and was only recently upgraded to build number CPH2521_13.1.1.160 (EX01) two days prior to publishing this review, which also added the June 2023 Android security patch,.

The software experience is typically ColorOS which has now made its way onto Realme and OnePlus devices. However, Oppo has fine-tuned its haptics to deliver very accurate vibrations, whether it’s for ringtones or browsing through the software interface. As usual, the software is also very customisable with a large selection of live wallpapers, a font which supports adaptive weight, customisable icons and plenty more.

ColourOS 13.1 is highly customisable

The only detail I found missing was its ability to theme the icons as per the system accent colour or theme, which is available on OnePlus devices. The Reno 10 Pro+ 5G comes with a Multi-Screen connect feature, which basically connects the phone with your tablet or a Windows PC and lets one copy/paste across devices with a shared clipboard, transfer files, screencast, open mobile apps on the PC, and more.

What seems to be a bit of a turn off (at least initially) are the preinstalled third-party apps. There are 12 of them when I first began using the phone and thankfully all of them, apart from FinShell Pay, can be uninstalled.

What I also found a bit annoying was Oppo’s App Market app, which basically has the same function as the Google Play Store, but throws plenty of spammy notifications on a daily basis. Game Center is another such app which lets you download games but sends plenty of notifications on a daily basis. Given the smartphone’s premium price tag, I really expected Oppo to tone this down. Eventually, I had to disable notifications all together from both apps.

Oppo Reno 10 Pro+ 5G performance

The Oppo Reno 10 Pro+ 5G performed as expected in terms of benchmarks, managing a score of 10,87,266 in AnTuTu and 951 and 3,728 in Geekbench 6’s single and multi-score tests, respectively. Oppo claims that it has equipped the Reno 10 Pro+ 5G with an ultra conductive graphite sheet in addition to its vapour chamber cooling system, which the company says is larger than the one in the Reno 8 Pro 5G.

In my experience, the phone remained cool whether I was using the camera outdoors to record 4K videos or even playing competitive games with maxed-out graphics. With a bit of tweaking in the gaming console’s toolkit, I managed to get the most out of the phone’s claimed 240Hz touch sampling rate, which was perfect for fast-paced gaming titles. This made the Reno 10 Pro+ 5G a very capable gaming device which barely got warm, no matter if I was playing Asphalt 9 Legends in 60fps mode or Call of Duty Mobile at Max or Ultra framerates.

The Oppo Reno 10 Pro+ 5G has a curved edge OLED panel

The phone’s display also fared well in bright sunlight and was quite accurate in terms of colour reproduction, provided I switched to the Natural display colour scheme. The Reno 10 Pro+ 5G’s display is also HDR10-certified and offers Oppo’s ProXDR Smart Display Control, which brightens up the display when viewing HDR photos on the device (one can tap on it the Pro XDR button to temporarily turn it off). HDR10 video streaming was limited to Amazon Prime Video and the YouTube app. Netflix did not show support for the same.

As for battery life, the Oppo Reno 10 Pro+ 5G lasted a good 19 hours, 15 minutes in our HD video loop test. With heavy use, the phone easily lasted a little over a day and about a day and half with casual use, which is also quite good for a premium device.

The fine ridges around the telephoto camera makes this phone easier to grip

Charging the Oppo Reno 10 Pro+ 5G was unbelievably quick when using the proprietary SuperVOOC charger. The phone charged from zero to 75 percent in just 15 minutes. The charging system takes a breather after that mark and slows down, but yet, it manages a full charge in just 30 minutes. During the initial burst, the phone barely warmed up which again is quite impressive for a wired fast-charging system.

Oppo Reno 10 Pro+ 5G cameras

The Oppo Reno 10 Pro+ 5G has three rear cameras which includes a 50-megapixel primary camera (with OIS), an 8-megapixel ultra-wide with a 112-degree field of view (FOV) and an interesting 64-megapixel telephoto camera with 3X optical zoom. Selfies are handled by a 32-megapixel front-facing camera. The camera interface is typically Oppo and you also get access to a Pro mode for photos, if you desire that level of accuracy or aren’t happy with the results from the Auto mode. Despite having HDR10+ support for its display, the Oppo Reno 10 Pro+ 5G cannot record HDR video.

In daylight, the primary camera manages an impressive level of detail. Whether shooting landscapes or people, photos have accurate skin tones and mostly natural-looking colours. Dynamic range is well in control, but there are overexposed patches in the brighter areas of a scene. However, these are quite rare. The phone lacks a macro camera or the capability to shoot such photos, but the primary camera lets you get close enough to the action (10-15cm) and the results look sharp and clear.

Oppo Reno 10 Pro+ 5G daylight camera samples (Top to bottom): Ultra-wide, primary, telephoto (tap to see full size)

In low light, the phone automatically captures longer exposures so there’s usually no need to switch to the dedicated Night mode. The camera performs quite well under street lighting with slightly limited dynamic range (particularly in the shadows) leading to slightly contrasty photos. However, there is less resolved detail when snapping photos of dimly-lit scenes, even after switching to Night mode, which is expected from a smartphone at this price point.

Performance of the ultra-wide camera in daylight is just fine, but photos were not as detailed as the primary camera and often came out a bit overexposed. There’s minor barrel distortion as well along with some purple fringing when shooting bright scenes. In low light, photos appear quite average with soft details and blotchy textures.

Oppo Reno 10 Pro+ 5G low-light camera samples. Top: Ultra-wide-angle camera (Auto), bottom: primary camera (Auto) (tap to see full size)

In the case of the Reno 10 Pro+ 5G, the telephoto camera is the actual showstopper. Oppo has equipped it with an unusually high-resolution sensor and this manages to capture really incredible photos that are difficult to find among smartphones at this price point. Oppo’s periscopic telephoto setup also manages to keep the minimum focussing distance at around 25cm.

There is also a hybrid implementation at work where the camera software sticks to the primary camera inside the 25cm margin, even if you switch to the 3X zoom setting. Once an object is more than 25cms away from the phone, the system automatically switches back to the 3X periscope telephoto camera.

Photos captured by the telephoto camera (right) have a cooler colour tone compared to those captured by the primary camera (left)

Because of this implementation, there is a noticeable difference between the quality of these 3X magnified photos from the primary camera and the telephoto camera. 3X photos from the primary camera don’t look as sharp as the ones captured by the telephoto camera as they are scaled-up crops from the primary camera. However, the photos from the 3X telephoto camera are quite impressive. When shooting subjects or objects, the depth, detail and separation offered by this camera is really impressive in daylight and even under artificial light. In dimly-lit or street-lit shooting conditions, photos come out looking soft and have a water-colour effect with limited detail.

The camera system is also capable of shooting beyond 3X zoom, but the results start to drop in quality after 6X itself.

The telephoto camera (right) shows noticeably cooler colour tones compared to the primary camera (left)

Selfies look sharp with accurate skin tones once you switch the beautifying features off. The phone is also good at shooting clear and sharp selfies in low light, which is another rarely found quality in smartphones in this segment. Edge detection, while accurate in daylight, falters a bit in low light.

Videos captured at 4K 30fps in daylight are well stabilised and show good details and dynamic range. 4K 60fps footage is also equally impressive with a steady framerate and good stabilisation. Shooting at 4K 30fps setting in low light results in footage with minimal noise with a steady framerate and slightly limited dynamic range. Stabilisation is also quite good with a bit of shimmer, but the frame is a bit cropped. Switching to 4K 60fps in low light produces a steady framerate but with very limited dynamic range and a contrasted look. The ultra-wide angle camera is limited to 1080p 60fps video recording.

Verdict

The Oppo Reno 10 Pro+ 5G definitely meets our expectations and is a noticeable leap over the Reno 8 Pro 5G, which felt more like a mid-range smartphone in terms of its camera and raw performance. Despite the slightly dated processor, the Reno 10 Pro+ 5G still manages to deliver good performance and also comes with capable camera hardware.

However, as mentioned earlier in this review, there’s the OnePlus 11 5G (Review) which offers a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC, along with a bigger 5,000mAh battery. It also has a superior ultra-wide angle camera with a higher resolution sensor. There’s also the iQoo 11 5G (Review) which packs hardware that’s similar to the OnePlus 11, and although it lacks the rather flexible camera of the 11 5G and the Reno 10 Pro+ 5G, it does gets 120W wired fast charging, which is pretty much unmatched in this segment (and beyond). If you’re specifically looking for good cameras in this segment, then it’s hard to ignore the Google Pixel 7 (Review).

Those looking solely at the raw power of the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 SoC, will also find it in more affordable alternatives. The recently launched iQoo Neo 7 Pro 5G has similar core specifications and a faster 120W charging system and is priced from Rs. 34,999. The newly launched Nothing Phone 2 uses the same processor too and adds an IP54 rating and wireless charging, along with an eye-catching design.

Oppo’s Reno 10 Pro+ 5G has managed to find its sweet spot with its quality telephoto and selfie cameras, both of which are hard to find at this price point and would probably be one of the main reasons why many would choose it over the OnePlus 11 5G.

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LG Electronics Targets $77 Billion Sales by 2030, Aims to Enter List of Top 10 Global Vehicle Component Firms

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hitesh

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July 12, 2023

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LG Electronics Targets Billion Sales by 2030, Aims to Enter List of Top 10 Global Vehicle Component Firms

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LG Electronics said on Wednesday it is targeting KRW 100 trillion (roughly Rs. 6,33,791 crore) in sales by 2030 and plans some KRW 50 trillion (roughly Rs. 3,19,007 crore) of investment as the South Korean company announced its future strategy.

It plans to become a global top 10 company in vehicle components by more than doubling revenue to KRW 20 trillion (roughly Rs. 1,27,595 crore) by 2030, while strengthening service platforms on its home appliance and TV businesses that generate recurring profits, such as media subscriptions and rentals.

“LG Electronics will tranform its business portfolio… increase profits by growing in business-to-business, and transition to a service business,” CEO William Cho told a press conference.

“We will not rest on our past success in home appliances.”

LG also plans to enter new markets such as electric vehicle charging and digital healthcare.

To achieve its goals, LG said it will actively consider inorganic growth such as joint ventures, mergers and acquisitions.

LG said it aims for an operating profit margin of 7 percent by 2030.

In 2022, LG reported about KRW 65 trillion (roughly Rs. 4,14,761 crore) in consolidated sales excluding affiliate LG Innotek, which makes device components such as camera modules for smartphones.

LG said it expects the order backlog of its fast-growing Vehicle component Solutions, the company’s newest business division, to approach KRW 100 trillion (roughly Rs. 6,38,323 crore) by end-year, with those revenues spread over many years.

That would be up from more than KRW 80 trillion ($61.72 billion) as of end-March, according to an eBest Investment & Securities report on Monday.

Vehicle component Solutions, which also makes infotainment systems and lamps, turned to profit last year and reported KRW 2.4 trillion (roughly Rs. 15,317 crore) in sales in the January-March quarter.

On Friday, LG Electronics estimated its second-quarter operating profit rose 12.7 percent from a year earlier to KRW 892.7 billion (roughly Rs. 5,697 crore), its second-largest April-June quarter profit ever.

The only time LG announced a higher second-quarter profit was in 2021.

© Thomson Reuters 2023

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Nothing Phone 2 First Impressions: Sticking to the Formula

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hitesh

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July 11, 2023

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Nothing Phone 2 First Impressions: Sticking to the Formula

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The Nothing Phone 2 is officially here, and after weeks of teasers we finally get to see if all the hype was worth it or not. The Nothing Phone 1 was (and still is) a solid first attempt from a new company and it got many things right, including the price, which means that the Phone 2 has some big shoes to fill. While our review is in progress, here are our initial impressions of the phone.

The Nothing Phone 2 ships in a slim package much like the Phone 1, but you now get a proper box which slides out from inside the outer printed jacket. Here, you’ll find some documentation, the transparent SIM eject tool, and a flashy new USB Type-C cable with a transparent section near the connector. The Phone 2 comes in a new Dark Grey colour instead of black, but there’s still a white variant.

Nothing has launched the Phone 2 in three configurations. The base variant is priced at Rs. 44,999 in India and has 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. For Rs. 49,999, you get 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. There’s a new third variant this time with 512GB of storage (and 12GB of RAM) which is priced at Rs. 54,999 in India. Prices are of course higher compared to the Phone 1’s launch pricing, but the Phone 2 does have notable upgrades to try and justify that.

The bundled cable is fancier but you still don’t get a power adapter in the box

It’s clear that design plays a pretty big role for Nothing; moreso than specs. The Phone 2 evolves that original semi-transparent design in subtle ways. From afar, it’s tough to tell the two models apart but you’ll notice the changes once you hold them both. The Nothing Phone 2 is a larger smartphone than Phone 1 – noticeably taller and a bit wider, heavier, and thicker. It still feels excellent in the hand, and Nothing says the mid-frame is made of 100 percent recycled aluminium.

The antenna bands and one of the microphones are positioned a bit differently on the new Phone 2, but the buttons and ports are in the same places as on the Phone1. The glass back panel of Phone 2 has curved edges making it nicer to hold, and the Glyph lights now have more segments, thereby allowing for more varied lighting patterns and displays of information.

The new taller display on the Nothing Phone 2 is an LTPO OLED panel

The display on the Nothing Phone 2 is still flat but now has a centred hole-punch camera. It measures 6.7 inches and the company has used an updated LTPO OLED panel so the refresh rate can vary from 1Hz from 120Hz, if needed. Peak brightness gets a boost to up to 1,600 nits, while the Phone 2’s water resistance rating has been improved slightly to IP54, versus IP53.

The Nothing Phone 2’s hardware has received some upgrades too. As opposed to the mid-range chip in the Phone 1, Nothing has gone with the more premium Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 SoC from Qualcomm. It’s not the latest or greatest, but it’s tried and tested, and I think it should do just fine for its segment. The battery has gotten a slight bump in capacity to 4,700mAh, and the Phone 2 now supports 45W PD fast charging. There’s also still 15W wireless charging along with 5W reverse wireless charging.

The Nothing Phone 2 still has two rear cameras, but the main one has been upgraded to a 50-megapixel Sony IMX890 sensor; the same one we’ve seen in many recent phones such as the OnePlus 11R, OnePlus Nord 3, and more. The ultra-wide camera uses the same 50-megapixel Samsung JN1 sensor as the Phone 1, but it does have autofocus for macro photos. The selfie camera on the Phone 2 has been upgraded to a 32-megapixel Sony IMX615 sensor. We are in the process of testing the cameras so do check the full review for our final thoughts, when it’s out.

The Nothing Phone 2 has a larger battery and can be charged quicker

Finally, we come to software. The Nothing Phone 2 runs Nothing OS 2.0, which is based on Android 13. The Phone 2 should receive three years of Android upgrades and four years of security patches, as per the company. Nothing OS 2 introduces some new widgets, a monochrome icon pack, and many subtle tweaks to the interface.

The Glyph lighting system has gotten new customisation options. It now supports auto-brightness and you can tag certain apps or types of notifications from a particular app as ‘essential’, which means one light strip on the back will stay lit till you dismiss or view that notification. There are new ringtones and notification sound packs, and you can even now use the Glyph lights to keep track of a timer or check the progress of an activity in some third-party apps such as Uber. Finally, the new Glyph composer allows you to create your own ringtones and alert sounds.

The Nothing Phone 2 has some tough contenders to deal with in India. There are the OnePlus 11 5G, Oppo Reno 10 Pro+ 5G, and iQoo 11 5G to name a few. We’ll be exploring the Phone 2’s software and performance in much greater detail in the full review, so make sure you don’t miss it. In the meantime, do drop us a comment and let us know if there’s anything specific you’d like to know about this phone.

From the Nothing Phone 2 to the Motorola Razr 40 Ultra, several new smartphones are expected to make their debut in July. We discuss all of the most exciting smartphones coming this month and more on the latest episode of Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.