News

LeEco’s Le Pro 3 and Le S3 smartphones invade US

Published

October 20, 2016

Marvin Velasco

After releasing a beast of smartphone in the Le Pro 3 just last month, LeEco is now making its way to the US market, headlined by the aforementioned flagship and the more affordable Le S3.

If you already read up on our initial launch story of the Le Pro 3, note that some things have changed for the US release. There’ll only be one variant available, and it’ll cost $399, which makes it a little more expensive than most of what China is getting.

Here is what’s being offered: a 5.5-inch Full HD 1080p display, Qualcomm’s top-end Snapdragon 821 processor, 4GB of memory with 64GB of storage, a pair of 16-megapixel and 8-megapixel cameras, 4070mAh battery with Quick Charge 3.0, and — surprise, surprise — no 3.5mm headphone jack.

[irp posts=”4692″ name=”LeEco’s flagship Le Pro 3 has beastly specs”]

So yes, it’s nowhere near as impressive as the Chinese variants, but the US model is still groundbreaking when you consider how little penetration China-based brands have had in western countries.

The launch is certainly a step up from whatever Xiaomi has accomplished; the former top-five smartphone manufacturer in the world only managed to release the Android-powered Mi Box 4K set-top box in the US this month, with no handsets in sight.

Huawei has also been working hard on a breakthrough in the west. It’s biggest successes have been the Google-supported Nexus 6P and the recently launched Honor 8, but neither have made a grand enough impact to call the company a force worth reckoning with.

Only OnePlus has made enough headlines to count as a threat, but its strategy focuses on creating high-quality devices at low quantities, resulting in fantastic reviews and negligible revenue.

[irp posts=”3385″ name=”OnePlus 3 unboxing and hands-on”]

LeEco’s other smartphone, the Le S3, is actually totally new, and makes an even stronger case for the brand’s case in the US. It’s quite the bargain for $249, especially once you see what it’s capable of.

It’s equipped with the same 5.5-inch Full HD screen as its counterpart, a midrange Snapdragon 652 chipset, 3GB of RAM with 32GB of storage, the same set of cameras, 3000mAh battery with Quick Charge 3.0, and no dedicated audio port to speak of.

Both handsets come with Android 6.0 Marshmallow skinned with LeEco’s custom EUI design, along with an aluminum body, rear-mounted fingerprint scanner, and USB Type-C 3.5mm adapter, in case you must use your traditional headphones.

There’ll be a flash sale on November 2, and if you’re quick enough, LeEco will shave off $100 from the retail prices of both phones to make them even cheaper. Now that’s a great way to make your presence known in a foreign land.

Source: LeMall, (2)

News

The iPhone 18 might sell out for an unexpected reason

The ongoing shortage might play a part in the phone selling out earlier than expected.

Published

August 7, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

An iPhone selling out is not news. Because of how popular the phones are, it’s within the realm of probability that Apple runs out of stock at some point. According to a new report, this year won’t be any different… but it’s for an entirely different reason.

First reported by analyst Tim Culpan, Apple is reportedly struggling to meet its demand for semiconductors for the iPhone 18 and the foldable iPhone. The ongoing memory shortage is cutting off Apple’s ability to deliver the required supply of smartphones in a timely fashion. The report even claims that TSMC, which helps produce the iPhone, is sitting on a shipment of processors, worth US$ 1 billion, that don’t have memory chips.

Now, Apple is still confident that it can weather the launch. However, if the shortage persists, the iPhone 18 generation will likely sell out much more quickly than expected.

It’s an interesting time for Apple to experience such a shortage. It’s been heavily rumored that the company will launch its very first foldable phone next month, creating a new market for the brand. Apple definitely wants this attempt to succeed after the tepid response to its last new product, the Vision Pro.

News

These “smart” glasses just sold out in under a week

DuckDuckGo touts that these glasses have zero AI, zero cameras, and an infinite battery life.

Published

August 7, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

Smart glasses are in a weird place right now. While a chunk of the population views them as cool and innovative, another significant chunk sees them as a privacy nightmare. If you’re in the latter group but want to see what life is like on the former, DuckDuckGo has a new product: a pair of anti-surveillance glasses with no camera or AI, otherwise known as just normal sunglasses.

If it’s not obvious, yes, it’s a troll product. DuckDuckGo is a search engine famously known for pushing privacy as a priority, opposing Google’s penchant for advertising and AI. Now, the search engine is taking on the smart glasses market.

Partnering with Knockaround, DuckDuckGo released the Paso Robles, a pair of sunglasses touted as having zero cameras, an always-offline mode, and a battery life of infinity.

It’s a statement piece. The rims have a logo mark, similar to the Meta’s glasses. The packaging also states that the glasses are “designed to block the sun, not send data to the cloud.”

Now, if you want a pair, they cost only US$ 35, as opposed to Meta’s US$ 299 price tag, but they are already sold out.

Which says quite a bit about today’s sentiment against AI and for privacy. Of course, to be fair, DuckDuckGo’s supply is certainly less than Meta’s stock for their smart glasses. It does, however, prove that the sentiment is there.

As of now, the world is slowly realizing that unimpeded smart glasses aren’t such a good idea, leading to people concerned about their privacy. In fact, some states have already started banning the technology in certain public spaces.

News

Google will force Android users to use Gemini next month

Google Assistant will be retired as well.

Published

August 6, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

What is Google’s voice assistant called? Technically, there are two possible answers: Google Assistant and Gemini. Despite Google’s push for Gemini, the ubiquitous Google Assistant is still a common option for most users. However, the company will soon take that choice away as the voice assistant will retire in favor of Gemini.

First reported by 9to5Google, Google has sent emails to users, declaring that Google Assistant will no longer be an option for Android users starting September 4. On that date, the company will slowly roll out an update to get rid of the assistant’s availability on device.

Google also makes it clear that Gemini will be “the assistant experience on Android” moving forward. If you’re used to Google Assistant to help you with handsfree use, you’ll have only one option soon. This also affects other peripherals including smartwatches and audio accessories.

Of course, there are a few exceptions. Devices that can’t support an AI-powered assistant like Gemini are mercifully spared of the forced transition. Likewise, devices in countries that don’t support the AI assistant are also saved.

Despite the tepid reception of AI today, Google remains adamant about pushing Gemini to more users, regardless of whether they want it or not. In fact, a forced move like this will likely inflate the numbers that more devices are using Google’s AI software than ever before, while conveniently hiding the fact that most users never really had much of a choice.