Given that Oppo’s upcoming R9 smartphone is scheduled to be made official on March 17 (next week), the company has been running a teaser campaign for the device over the last couple of weeks.

Continuing the campaign, a couple of new teasers have been released by the company revealing that the R9 will feature a front-facing fingerprint sensor capable of unlocking the phone in just 0.2 seconds.

In addition, the Chinese company also reportedly dropped hints about the handset being ideal for making mobile payments – if you recall, there have already been reports that several smartphone manufacturers in China are planning to release their own payments service, although Oppo wasn’t named explicitly.

Coming back to the R9, the device (along with the R9 Plus) has already been spotted on TENAA, revealing a 5.5-inch 1080p AMOLED touchscreen and a 1.95 GHz octa-core processor. Other specs include 4GB of RAM, 32GB of expandable storage, 2,850 mAh battery, and two 16 MP cameras.

As for the price, the handset is expected to carry a tag of RMB 2,498, which translates into around $385 at current exchange…

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The Android client of the Google-owned navigation app Waze has received a new update that bumps the version to 4.0 and brings along some new features like smart reminders, as well as various improvements.

The updated app now gives you traffic- as well as drive times-based (in short: smart) reminders to leave on time for your Calendar events. The update also includes new ETA panel which is aimed at organizing everything you need in one place. “View reports, check alternate routes, add a stop on the way, or instantly send ETA to friends and family,” the change-log says.

In addition, the app now requires fewer taps for things like starting a drive as well as sending locations and directions. And finally, Google claims that the update reduces the app’s battery consumption significantly.

Source (Google…

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Last week, Xiaomi announced the roll-out of version 7.2 of its MIUI ROM, revealing that the update will hit devices in batches. The first batch that got the update included the Mi 5, Mi 4S, Mi Note Pro, Mi 4c, Mi Pad 1, Redmi Note 4G (Single SIM), and Redmi 1S.

The good news is that the update has started hitting the second batch of devices, too. These should include the Mi Note, Mi 3, Mi 4, Mi 4i, Mi 2/2S, Mi Pad 2, Redmi 3, Redmi Note 3, Redmi Note 2, Redmi Note 4G (Dual SIM), Redmi Note 3G, Redmi 2A, and Redmi 2.

If your device falls in the second batch, you’ll soon received an OTA notification, if not already. Alternatively, those feeling impatient can also download the update package from official MIUI website (head to the MIUI link below).

Via |…

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Watch and accessories company Fossil has updated its Q series of wearables with a new device. Dubbed Q Motion, the wearable is basically a cylindrical shaped tracker that not only tracks user’s activity, but sleep, too – making it the first wearable fitness device from Fossil to do so.

Being an activity tracker, the Q Motion obviously tracks your movements. In addition, it also vibrates whenever user receives smartphone notifications – the device is capable of filtering notifications through its companion app installed on the user’s phone.

The wearable also includes a “smart tap” feature that, as the name suggests, lets you tap on the device a set number of times to initiate actions like playing music on your phone, finding your phone, and taking a selfie.

The Q Motion will be on display at SXSW next week. It will go on sale sometime this summer carrying a $95 price…

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Samsung has outed a couple of Tizen-powered phones until now: the modestly-specced Z1 and a comparatively more powerful (although still entry-level) Z3. While the former was launched back in January last year, the latter arrived in October. Now, there are reports that a successor to the Z1 is in the works.

Samsung Z1

The Z1(2016) is said to carry a model number of SM-Z150, and feature an AMOLED display like the Z3. Aside from this, nothing else is currently known about the handset, including when it’s going to be available and what price tag it will carry.

The report comes just a few weeks after an SM-Z510 – which is alleged to be the Samsung Z5 – was spotted listed on Zauba. Assuming that the Z1(2016) and the alleged Z5 are different phones, the latter could well be the successor to the Samsung…

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While it was already confirmed that Samsung’s newest flagship smartphones – the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge – will officially go on sale starting March 11, the company has now made a formal announcement in this regard.

“Samsung Electronics today announced the commercial launch of its new Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge around the globe including US, Europe, Singapore, Australia and Korea, starting from today,” the South Korean tech giant said in a post on its website today.

In case you missed, Samsung’s mobile chief Koh Dong-jin has already confirmed that the handsets will be available in 60 countries in the first wave of their global launch. Just yesterday, he revealed that pre-orders for the devices have been stronger than what the company was…

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HTC, is taking its sweet time preparing for the launch of the HTC One M10 also codenamed ‘HTC Perfume’ in even earlier leaks. Perhaps it’s waiting for all the Samsung Galaxy S7 hype to be over before releasing its newest flagship.

After seeing the rear of the phone in leaks, renders and teasers, I finally understand why HTC decided to go with such a large chamfered edge. It’s more for ergonomics than aesthetics. The oversized chamfer gives the edges of the rear of the device a tapered edge, such that will make holding the device a more pleasurable experience.

#HTC #HTC10 @angt29 via @tanalibera https://t.co/rASj57rJ3D http://pic.twitter.com/QawIhPxcDI— Steve Hemmerstoffer (@stagueve) March 10, 2016

The front of the device gives us a look at the homescreen of the device and judging by that weather widget, we could assume this leak originates from Beijing. We can also see a fingerprint scanner right below the screen now joined by two capacitive buttons on either side. A departure from the on screen buttons of the HTC One M9.

The company hasn’t been doing so hot in the past couple of years so let’s hope this phone will be HTC’s game changer for the year. If it doesn’t, at least HTC could pray that its alleged future partnership with Google could help get it out of deeper…

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Everyone seems to have forgotten about Samsung’s 3G-connected smartwatch which is also set to go on sale at the same time as the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge.

March 11, the same day as the official release of the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge. Among all the madness of news surrounding the impending launch of the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge, Samsung’s Gear S2 Classic will be going on sale at AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon.

The only carrier who bothered to put a pre-order link on their website is AT&T which shows the pricing at $250 with 2-year service agreement. Which is still crazy for such a device but I guess when you consider the monthly service fee for maintaining a connected watch, it KINDA justifies it?

The Gear S2 Classic is a smartwatch which features a more traditional watch design on the rotary-style dial and metal bodies with interchangeable bands.

Source | AT&T pre-order…

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LINE brings you a new way to talk to people, a way that you might never have to use, but if you want to, you can! LINE is bringing group voice calls to chat groups of up to 200 people.

“Calls can be initiated from within group chats or multiple person chats, and a notification message will be sent to all of the users participating in the chat. The number of people currently participating in the call can also be confirmed from within the chat. An icon is displayed above the user icon of the person currently speaking at the time, enabling users to easily communicate with each other.”

The feature is first rolling out to all countries outside of Japan, Thailand, Taiwan, and Indonesia. These countries will follow soon after. These countries hold a huge chunk of LINE’s users and an update like this needs to be rolled out in stages.

The feature is expected to come to LINE for Mac shortly after.

Source |…

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T-Mobile is usually the one to go all out with trash talking the other carriers, wireless promotions, and T-Mobile has also been aggressively advertising for a while now. Today is no different when T-Mobile set up its own transparent booths with hand-rails for passers-by of New York City to stop, try the Gear VR, take pictures, and talk about it to their friends. “Have you seen that VR thing? Oh, MAN, you gotta try it!”

Surely enough, the reps that are aiding with setting up the demos for every person must be telling them about T-Mobile’s buy-one-get-one-free deal for the New Galaxy S7 and S7 edge, which is to be officially released tomorrow.

Feast your 👀! Rock the #GalaxyS7 and the #GearVR at our #RealityCheck event in Times Square right NOW! 🔥 http://pic.twitter.com/yJEez4TO9m— T-Mobile (@TMobile) March 10, 2016

Samsung is also clever to give these Gear VRs away for every customer who pre-orders the new smartphone. It is difficult to get people to buy something they don’t know if they need, but by throwing it in for free, Samsung should be able to leverage more Gear VR units off the shelves by word of mouth.

T-Mobile’s official twitter account has been tweeting photos of the all the fun. Today was a beautiful day in New York and T-Mobile is taking advantage of the thousands of people who have come out to enjoy the incoming spring…

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