News
ZTE Blade series, RedMagic 8 PRO now in the Philippines
5G-ready phone made affordable

Global manufacturer ZTE has released the Blade Series in the Philippines, offering the market new options for a 5G-ready smartphone at an affordable price point and budget phones.
The high-performance devices will come in three variants: the Blade V41 Vita 5G, Blade V40 Design, and the Blade V40S.
Headlining the series’ list is the Blade V41 Vita 5G, which retails for PhP 11,999 and boasts of the following specs:
- Processor – MediaTek Dimensity 810 5G, 2.4GHz maximum power
- OS – Android 12
- Display – 6.6-inch IPS LCD screen, 90Hz
- Camera – 50MP triple camera rear, 8MP camera
- Memory/Storage – 6GB RAM, 128GB
- Battery – 4,500mAh, 22.5W charging
- Slots – 2x SIM card, 1x microSD
- Connectivity – Bluetooth 5.0, 3.5mm jack, USB Type-C
Not far behind is the Blade V40 Design, which has a 4GB+3GB dynamic RAM expansion, a feature starting to become common for entry-level phones. It has the same triple camera setup and storage capacities as its bigger brother, and is priced at PhP 10,999.
Lastly, there’s the Blade V40S, which costs only PhP 7,999. It runs on a more basic Unisoc UMS512T T618 processor (12nm), but does offer a 50MP camera and 128GB internal storage for one’s everyday use.
RedMagic 8 PRO gaming phone made available
Meanwhile, the more high-end Nubia RedMagic 8 PRO which delivers on seamless gaming has also been introduced to Filipinos.
Priced at PhP 42,999 for the 12GB+256GB variant and PhP 53,999 for the 16GB+512GB model, the RedMagic 8PRO is powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 along with Red Core 2, DDR5 RAMs, and UFS 4.0.
Its large 6,000mAh battery supports 65W super-fast charging. The phone also has an ICE 11 multi-dimensional cooling system to ensure only the best experience.
Display-wise, the phone features a large 6.8-inch AMOLED 120Hz screen. It has a maximum brightness of 1,300 nits and protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 5.


The race for artificial intelligence is a hot trail. Amid the unbridled popularity of ChatGPT, several companies have started pushing their own language models out the gate. Google, eager to compete in the emerging industry, has now opened Bard to users.
Today, Google has started issuing invitations to Google One subscribers for a chance to try the new chatbot. Subscribers can enter a waitlist to test the technology for themselves.
In essence, Bard acts the same as ChatGPT. Users can talk to the bot conversationally, and it will respond perfectly, as if you were talking to another human being. It’s a language learning model. By talking to so many users, the model can learn the best way to reply to certain prompts.
Although Google has access to its search engine, Bard is currently meant to complement it. The company warns users that the chatbot is still prone to occasional mistakes. As an example, it gave the wrong scientific name for a plant. While this example is innocuous, there can be more nefarious errors that the developers are still trying to fix. With a wider test now open to the public, Google hopes to fix more egregious mistakes ahead of a wider launch.
For now, if you subscribe to Google’s premium subscription service, you can wait in line to try out the new technology.
SEE ALSO: Google is working on a ChatGPT competitor called Bard

EA is a mixed bag nowadays. Formerly one of the biggest names in gaming, the company’s public reception is more varied these days. However, no one can argue against the studio’s earlier eras with more notable titles. Unfortunately, that era is coming to a more definitive close. EA is officially delisting a few notable Battlefield titles and the original Mirror’s Edge from digital stores.
In an official statement from the company, EA has announced the retirement of four online titles this year. Starting April 28, users will no longer be able to buy Battlefield 1943, Battlefield: Bad Company, Battlefield: Bad Company 2, and Mirror’s Edge online. Additionally, the online services for these games will cease on December 8.
Still going strong today, the Battlefield franchise is EA’s answer to the Call of Duty franchise. While the latter focuses on more arcade-like shooting, Battlefield tries to infuse more strategic gameplay into historical and modern-day shooting.
On the other hand, Mirror’s Edge is a classic first-person parkour adventure. At the time, the title was notable for its fluid movement and easy-to-read visuals. It even spawned a sequel, Mirror’s Edge Catalyst.
Anyone who owns these titles can still play through them after April. However, come December, players can only go through the offline single-player campaigns of these games.
SEE ALSO: Blumhouse is getting into gaming

TikTok is in for another fight. Recently, the American government upped its efforts to ban the video-sharing platform from the country. The company is preparing to fight back. Ahead of a potential ban, it is enlisting the help of its most precious resource: TikTok users.
Today, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew shared a video to update the entire community about his impending congressional hearing later this week. In the video, the CEO thanks the American userbase in helping the platform grow, enumerating important numbers ahead of the hearing. For example, TikTok now has 150 million users — which, Chew notes, is half of the population of the United States — and 7,000 employees in the country.
The video then goes on to share the government’s plans to ban TikTok, potentially taking the app away from the big numbers that Chew mentioned. Further, the CEO is asking all these users to share what they love about the app in the comments of the video.
@tiktok Our CEO, Shou Chew, shares a special message on behalf of the entire TikTok team to thank our community of 150 million Americans ahead of his congressional hearing later this week.
For years, the American government has hounded the app over its Chinese ownership. The company — especially parent company ByteDance — has the potential to act as a conduit for Chinese surveillance, the government argues. The company has tried to counter these claims by increasing its employees in the country.
Now, the fight is coming to a head with several government bodies and other countries banning the app outright. It’s unknown how Chew is planning to attack the incoming congressional hearing. However, it’s likely that the company will leverage user feedback to buoy the app as an essential part of the current American landscape.
SEE ALSO: UK starts banning TikTok
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