Last year’s Microsoft Band was a very functional fitness tracker and one of the few that works with all three major smartphone platforms. However, the device sorely lacked in terms of visual appeal and not something you’d want to be seen wearing all the time.

The second generation model seems to fix that. The new band has a much thinner profile with a curved display and metallic accents on the side, all of which looks less chunky and curvier than before.

There is no word on what else has changed besides the design but Microsoft has a hardware event lined up for October 6 so you can be sure to find out more about the Band 2 then.

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If you watched the 67th Annual Emmy Awards last night, you may have noticed Andy Samberg giving out HBO Now login credentials, which he claimed were for his account.

Turns out it wasn’t just a joke. Those who bothered to enter Khaleesifan3@EmmyHost.com and password1 in their HBO Now app were greeted with a fully functional account. Eventually the account was saturated by too many people trying to access it but it did work, surprisingly.

TechCrunch claims it managed to access the account initially but can no longer access it due to too many devices in use. Unfortunately, by now either someone changed the password to restrict it to themselves or the account has been closed, so there’s not much use trying to access it. But for whoever is still logged in, enjoy your free Game of Thrones while it…

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Samsung’s Q3 2015 profits are expected to remain below market expectations, according to analysts from South Korea, who are putting the blame on the unimpressive performance of the company’s mobile unit.

While the unit reported a Q1 and Q2 profit of 2.74 trillion won ($2.34 billion) and 2.76 trillion won ($2.36 billion), respectively, the Q3 profit is expected to remain below 2 trillion won.

Although the South Korean company’s mobile shipments have increased in Q3, the drop in profit is being attributed to the slowing demand of Samsung’s high-end smartphones, where, of course, the margins are comparatively higher.

Overall, the company’s Q3 operating profit is expected to be around 6.61 trillion won, down 6.4% from the 7.06 trillion won figure estimated back in July this…

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Microsoft-owned online chat service Skype is currently facing issues and seems to be down for most users worldwide. Skype Support has sent out a tweet acknowledging the problem and saying that a fix is being worked on.

We are aware of an issue affecting Skype status at the moment, and are working on a quick fix: http://t.co/ymSzmrgEX0 http://pic.twitter.com/8LoqqL0hh7— Skype Support (@SkypeSupport) September 21, 2015

“Some of you may experience problems with Skype presence and may not see online. We have detected an issue with the status settings of Skype,” said a Skype spokesperson. “Affected users will not be able to change their status, their contacts will all show as offline and they will be unable to start Skype calls to them.”

The issue seems to have affected both desktop and mobile clients. Skype for Web, meanwhile, is working fine.

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Just over a month after launching the LG G Pad II 8.0 in South Korea, LG has reportedly launched the 10.1 variant in the country. The model was announced last month and showed off at this year’s IFA show in Berlin earlier this month.

Specs-wise, the tablet is powered by a Snapdragon 800 chipset with 2.26 GHz quad-core CPU and Adreno 330 GPU, and sports a WUXGA (1920 x 1200) display. It has 2GB RAM and 32GB internal memory which can be expanded up to 2TB, and packs in a 7,400mAh battery.

In terms of camera, the slate comes with a 5MP rear unit and a 2MP front shooter. Connectivity options include 4G LTE, Bluetooth 4.1, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, microUSB 2.0, and GPS/A-GPS. Measuring 254.3 x 161.1 x 7.8 mm and weighing in at 487 grams, the G Pad II 10.1 is claimed to have the thinnest bezels when compared with other similar sized tablets.

On the software side, the device offers features like Reader Mode, Dual Window, and QuickMemo+, and has Microsoft Office apps pre-installed. Running Android 5.1.1 Lollipop-based UX UI from LG, the tablet comes with two years of 100GB free OneDrive storage.

It will be available in both Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi + 4G LTE configuration, while color options include Brilliant Bronze. As for the pricing, the starting price is expected to be somewhere around $360. The tablet will be made available in the US within a week or…

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Nearly a couple of weeks after Apple announced the iPhone Upgrade Program at an event where the iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, and iPad pro were also unveiled, there are reports that Samsung is also planning to launch a similar phone leasing program for its Galaxy smartphones.

As per reports, the South Korean company’s leasing program could be launched in the next several months, although there are chances that the launch time-frame may accelerate. There is, however, no word on the pricing at the moment.

For the uninitiated, Apple’s leasing program allows you to get a new, unlocked iPhone every year directly from the company – you need to sign a two-year financing agreement and pay a little over $32 a month for the program, which also includes Apple Care+. Of course, you’ll still need a separate service plan from a carrier of your choice.

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Less than a couple of months after OnePlus co-founder Carl Pei revealed that their next smartphone will be unveiled before Christmas this year, alleged leaked renders of the device have surfaced online.

A quick look at one of the leaked images (shown above) reveals that the handset will feature a dual-camera set-up along with dual flash.

It’s worth mentioning that Pie had earlier also hinted that the next OnePlus smartphone will have a better design compared to the OnePlus 2, and said that it’ll be aimed at a “different type of audience.”

Keep in mind that there’s currently no official confirmation or evidence that these images are legit, so take them with a pinch of salt.

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Google has released an updated version of the Google App, which brings with it some new changes for the Google Now Launcher.

If you have the launcher installed along with the latest version of the Google App (5.3.19.19), you will notice that the app drawer now looks similar to the single page scrolling list on Marshmallow builds (or older versions of Android prior to 4.0, for those who remember).

Another neat feature is that you can now press and hold on the app drawer button on the homescreen to brings up search. You can then type the app name to find it instantly, instead of scrolling through the list, saving even more time. Although this functionality was always present in the search widget, the apps were often buried under the Google search suggestions, so this makes it easier to access.

The update is rolling out now on Google Play. Or you can grab the APK from…

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While we already know that the Xiaomi Mi 4c – which is set to be unveiled on September 22 – features a 5MP front camera, the Chinese company’s president and co-founder, Lin Bin, recently took to Weibo to tell us how great it is.

According to the images posted by Bin, the Mi 4c’s selfie shooter will feature an 85-degree super wide angle, making it equivalent to 24mm wide angle camera, which effectively means that it will be able to cover 6-7 people in one shot. It was also revealed that the handset will also come with a self timer option.

One particular image shared by him (see above) compared a selfie taken by the Mi 4c with the one taken by the iPhone 6, making a point that their upcoming handset covers more area than the Apple’s device. It’s worth mentioning that the iPhone 6 sports a 1.2-megapixel front camera.

Lastly, another image shared by Lin Bin confirmed that the Mi 4c will also come in a pink color…

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Just days after it was discovered that Apple’s Chinese App Store contains several malware-infected apps, the Cupertino-based company has cleaned up the app marketplace, and also issued a formal statement regarding the same.

“We’ve removed the apps from the App Store that we know have been created with this counterfeit software,” said a company spokesperson. “We are working with the developers to make sure they’re using the proper version of Xcode to rebuild their apps.”

There was, however, no word on how iPhone/iPad users can detect whether or not their devices are already infected with the malware, dubbed XcodeGhost.

According to Qihoo360 Technology, a Chinese security firm, a total of 344 apps have been found to infected so far. Some of these include music app NetEase Cloud Music, chat app WeChat, and ride-sharing app Didi…

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