News
This is our first look at Samsung’s holed smartphone
The Galaxy A8s looks better than expected
Almost a month ago, Samsung announced the world’s first holed smartphone. Surprisingly, the unique form factor isn’t even the company’s most astonishing plan right now. Samsung’s more ambitious plans have overshadowed the holed smartphone’s hype.
However, the Samsung A8s is also impressive by itself. Whereas the other plans have started leaking earlier, the holed midrange phone has finally received its first looks.
Based on existing information and rumors, German website AllAboutSamsung has created renders of the upcoming smartphone. Of course, renders are still speculations, in essence. Although, to its credit, AllAboutSamsung has correctly predicted the Galaxy A9’s looks in the past.
Image source: AllAboutSamsung
Going off of this, the Galaxy A8s renders give a good look at Samsung’s new Infinity-O Display. This new form factor is part of Samsung’s latest design refresh in 2019. Taking apart the traditional slab phone, the Infinity-O display drills a hole on the screen’s upper-left corner. The hole houses the phone’s front-facing selfie camera.
With its strange camera placement, the new display does away with the controversial notch. It’s one step closer to becoming truly bezel-less. Because of the lack of information, the renders don’t show where the usual front sensors are. Quite possibly, this hints at progress with Samsung’s planned integrated screen. Some sensors might come buried underneath the screen.
Other than the camera hole, the renders depict a triple rear camera system and a rear fingerprint scanner. Under the hardware, the phone will supposedly carry a midrange Snapdragon 710 processor and 6GB of RAM.
The Samsung Galaxy A8s will launch sometime in January next year.
SEE ALSO: Samsung Galaxy A9 with quadruple rear cameras is up for grabs
When you get your hands on a foldable phone, you should be able to expect a large battery. After all, powering two screens takes some juice. The numbers, however, might not be what you’d expect. Today, an official energy label has confirmed that the newest entry in the foldable space, the iPhone Duo, touts only a 4883mAh battery.
As required by Europe, new smartphones have to publish their information for transparency. Apple is no different. In its label for the iPhone Duo, the company listed 4883mAh as the official capacity of its very first foldable phone. Previous rumors have likewise speculated that the device will have two battery cells totalling the above rating.
If we’re talking relative capacity, a sub-5000mAh battery feels too low for such a big device. But does that mean that users will run into battery issues? Right now, it’s too early to tell.
Despite the size, the device itself might be efficient when it comes to managing battery life. For reference, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra has a 5000mAh battery but still offers impressive battery life for all-day use. And besides, the iPhone Duo’s folded screen is much smaller than other phones. Since users will likely stick with the smaller screen most of the time, the smaller battery should still last the whole day.
SEE ALSO: Apple iPhone 18 Pro Series review
Apps
GrabCar Group Ride now splits the fare automatically
Passengers stand to save up to 50% compared with booking a solo ride
GrabCar Group Ride now splits the fare automatically among passengers, making it simpler to book such ride types.
Each rider can save up to 50% on fare as well when using a group ride, compared with booking a solo ride.
The ride type lets the ride host and up to two friends share one GrabCar, with up to three drop-off points along the way. The more people join, the more affordable the ride becomes for everyone.
Regular ride buddies can also be saved as a group, together with frequent pickup and drop-off pins. This way, repeat bookings take just a few taps.
Such a system is ideal for officemates headed the same way or friends coming home from a night out, as well as plenty of other scenarios.
To book a Group Ride, follow these steps:
- Open the Grab app, tap GrabCar, then select Group Ride
- Enter your pickup point and drop-off
- Share the invite link with up to two friends
- Your friends can add their own drop-off points
- Confirm the booking to split the fare automatically
The GrabCar Group Ride feature is now available in all GrabCar cities nationwide.
Sony has unveiled three premium Walkman digital music players designed for audiophiles. The new lineup includes the flagship NW-WM1ZM3, NW-WM1AM3, and NW-ZX900, featuring upgraded audio components and technologies designed to deliver high-resolution sound.
The NW-WM1ZM3 and NW-WM1AM3 lead the lineup with premium copper components, upgraded power circuitry, and Sony’s S-Master HX digital amplifier technology. The NW-ZX900 also inherits select audio components from the flagship model.
Sony Walkman lineup emphasizes sound quality
The NW-WM1ZM3 features a gold-plated, oxygen-free copper chassis with 99.99% copper purity. Sony says its construction helps deliver powerful bass, a wider soundstage, and smoother high frequencies. It also uses KIMBER KABLE wiring to reduce noise and preserve audio signal quality.
The NW-WM1AM3 and NW-ZX900 combine aluminium-alloy main chassis designs with gold-plated copper rear chassis components. The WM1 models also feature upgraded power circuitry and larger copper coils to improve signal clarity and reduce distortion.
All three players support Sony’s S-Master HX digital amplifier technology, Native DSD audio, and balanced output. Their DSD Remastering Engine converts PCM audio into an 11.2MHz DSD stream. The updated implementation also works with music streamed over Wi-Fi, allowing listeners to use the feature without downloading their tracks.
Larger displays and longer battery life
The NW-WM1ZM3 and NW-WM1AM3 feature 5.5-inch displays, while the NW-ZX900 has a 5-inch screen. Sony says the larger displays improve navigation and make album artwork easier to view. Users can also customize the Walkman home screen.
Battery life reaches up to 35 hours of 128kbps MP3 playback on the WM1 models, with up to 31 hours of streaming playback. The NW-ZX900 offers up to 40 hours of MP3 playback or 35 hours when using streaming service apps.
Sony has also eliminated plastic from the packaging of all three models as part of its sustainability efforts.
Sony Walkman pricing and availability
The new Sony Walkman lineup will arrive in Singapore from November 2026. Suggested retail prices are as follows:
- NW-WM1ZM3: SGD 6,999
- NW-WM1AM3: SGD 3,599
- NW-ZX900: SGD 2,399
Sony will also offer preorder promotions while stocks last. Buyers can get S$1,000 off the NW-WM1ZM3, S$400 off the NW-WM1AM3, or S$200 off the NW-ZX900. Each purchase also comes with a free IER-M500 worth S$139.
Customers can purchase the players through Sony Store online or visit Sony Stores and authorized dealers.
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