News

Huawei P40 Pro+ available via Globe’s ThePLAN 1799

Huawei P40 Pro and P40 also available on the same plan

Published

June 19, 2020

GadgetMatch

If you’ve been planning to get the most premium of the Huawei P40 series’ trifecta of phones, you may do so with Globe. The Huawei P40 Pro+ is partnering with Globe to offer the phone at ThePLAN 1799.

Customers who pre-order the Huawei P40 Pro+ 5G with ThePLAN 1,799 (includes PhP 36,000 cashout) can get their hands on a pair of Huawei x Gentle Monster sunglasses for free.

Acting fast is the key, as only 200 of these limited edition items will be given out on a first come, first served basis, and only between the pre-order period from June 16 – June 26, 2020.

The other two P40 series phones are also available on ThePLAN 1,799.

P40 Pro — PhP 24,000 cashout
P40 — PhP 7,200 cashout

If you get these phone plans from June 19-30, 2020, you’ll also get a free Huawei Band 4 and 50GB of Huawei Cloud storage for a year.

We also caught wind that the P40 Pro+ will retail for PhP 69,990 in the Philippines (US$ 1397, EUR 1243, SG$ 1898). Huawei Philippines will likely announce the official pricing and availability soon.

Huawei P40 Pro+

The P40 Pro+ carries the same profile as the Huawei P40 Pro. It has a 6.58-inch OLED display with a 90Hz refresh rate. Also, it’s powered by Kirin 990 5G, 8GB RAM, and up to 512GB of internal storage. This handset still runs on Android 10 with EMUI 10 on top but without Google Mobile Services

However, it has an even better camera system than its siblings and Huawei topped the P40 Pro+ with higher-end features.

For starters, it prides itself with its Penta-rear camera setup: a 50-megapixel F/1.9 Ultra Vision main camera, 40-megapixel F/1.8 ultra-wide-angle lens, 8-megapixel SuperZoom F/4.4 periscope telephoto lens, another 8-megapixel F/2.4 telephoto lens, and TOF 3D depth sensor. On the front, it houses a 32-megapixel F/2.2 selfie camera.

Moreover, Huawei opted for a ceramic build in lieu of the glass and aluminum combination. Other notable features include 4,200mAh battery capable of 40W fast charging, 40W fast wireless SuperCharge, and 27W fast wireless reverse charging.

Petal Search Widget

Huawei has also released a new Petal Search widget that offers an alternative app search for users to conveniently access and download a wider variety of apps. Petal Search is now available for download on the AppGallery and can be added as a home-screen in the latest EMUI update (v 10.1.0.131).

It works in tandem with Huawei’s own AppGallery as well as third party apps like APKPure. You simply look for the App you want and Petal Search will return results on where you can download that app. If you already have APKPure installed, it will simply launch the app to install the app you were looking for.

Watch our Huawei P40 Pro+ Review.

India

Google to invest US$10 billion in India over 5-7 years

Tech companies are bullish about India

Published

July 14, 2020

Shivam Vahia

Benjamin Dada on Unsplash

alAt its annual Google for India event, Google announced it will be investing INR 75,000 crore (US$ 10 billion) within the next five to seven years. Google CEO Sundar Pichai said the investment will be via multiple channels. This includes direct investments, partnerships, and infrastructure.

“Investments will focus on four areas important to India’s digitization,” he said emphasizing on infrastructure.

He added that the recent pandemic has shown the need for technology and the adoption of new digital tools. Google will focus on improving internet access and offer more information in regional languages like Hindi, Tamil, Punjabi, and more.

Secondly, it will focus on building new products and services that will empower India’s businesses. Leveraging AI in the fields of health, education, and agriculture is a priority.

Google added that its Internet Saathi has already helped more than 30 million women across India. It’s an initiative that strives to spread internet awareness.

The tech giant has also increased its focus on India in the last few years since the market is hugely untapped. One of its most successful launches has been Google Pay. It leverages the country’s UPI (Unified Payments Interface) to transfer money instantaneously to friends, businesses, and even online services.

Pichai lauded Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of Digital India stating that India has made huge progress.

News

iQOO promises gaming phone with 120W fast charging this August

Charges from empty in just 15 minutes

Published

July 14, 2020

Luigi Leonardo

Image source: iQOO / Weibo

Earlier today, OPPO teased an upcoming 125W fast charging technology this Wednesday. The teaser is the highest charging capability we’ve heard so far. Though definitely a marvel, it certainly aims to upend vivo’s own punches in the battery war.

Coinciding with OPPO’s new teaser, vivo’s gaming sub-brand, iQOO held a press conference in China for the 120W battery technology that it’s been sitting on for quite a while now. Officially named the Super FlashCharge 120W, the upcoming tech can fill a 4000mAh battery in just 15 minutes, much like vivo’s fast charging presentation last year.

In the 15 minutes it took to charge the phone, the press conference detailed how the new technology could accomplish such a feat. Apparently, the battery is designed differently, allowing the device to charge quickly without overheating the phone.

More surprisingly, iQOO has also declared the technology ready for public release already. According to the press conference, the company will release a gaming smartphone built with the technology in August.

Since its inception, iQOO has always touted revolutionary technologies sold at an attractive price, as told by its first-ever flagship. Its most recent flagship, iQOO 3, boasted 55W fast charging and the quirkiest stress test. For sure, whatever iQOO comes up with in August will mimic this prestigious tradition.

News

OPPO teases 125W fast charging, the fastest to date

Going up against vivo’s iQOO

Published

July 14, 2020

Luigi Leonardo

Image source: OPPO / Weibo

Don’t you just hate it when you forget to charge your phone overnight? Thanks to new battery technologies, charging might soon become a thing of the past. Most recently, the upcoming Snapdragon 875 chipset will supposedly support 100W fast charging, a huge improvement over current standards.

Of course, this isn’t the first time that an impressive charging standard has made its debut. Last year, Xiaomi and vivo previewed an upcoming prototype for 100W and 120W fast charging technologies, respectively. However, the prototypes debuted with no definite launch date.

Today, OPPO’s own fast-charging technology has made another appearance. Posted on its official Weibo account, OPPO teased a new all-time high: 125W fast charging. Though it’s only 5W higher than vivo’s past prototype, 125W isn’t something to scoff at. vivo’s 120W charging demonstration filled an empty 4000mAh battery in just 13 minutes. OPPO’s 125W technology will likely push this even further.

Besides the teaser, OPPO also posted a definitive date: July 15. The company will likely reveal more details in a few days. Hopefully, the impending presentation will also reveal when the technology will finally make its way to a public release.

Apparently, OPPO saw it fit to launch a huge salvo in the battery wars today. vivo’s gaming sub-brand, iQOO, held a revelatory press conference for the 120W fast charging. While OPPO is still sitting on its 125W charging tech, iQOO is already gearing up for a release as soon as August.