TecQ is our weekly round-up of the latest stories from the world of technology.
1. Xiaomi Launches Redmi Note 8 Series in India Starting at Rs 9,999
Xiaomi has launched the Redmi Note 8 and Note 8 Pro in India with prices starting from Rs 9,999 and the phones will be available from next week onwards.
The new flagship device in the Redmi series comes with a 6.53-inch full HD display with 395 pixels quality. This bezel-less display offers 91.4 percent screen to body ratio which is also HDR enabled.
For protection, the Redmi 8 Pro uses Corning Gorilla Glass 5 on the front and the back. The phone will be offered in three color variants: Green, White and Black. It also comes with IP52 for dust and water resistance.
Read the story here to know more.
2. Google Launches Pixel 4, But Here’s Why It Won’t Be Coming to India
Now that we’ve seen the Google Pixel 4 in flesh, and the prices have been announced, here’s the bad news for those waiting in India to buy the phone. Google has confirmed that neither the Pixel 4 nor the 4XL will be coming to our shores this year.
Why is this happening? As you might know, the Pixel 4 supports gesture-based Motion Sense control which is one of the coolest thing on this year’s Pixel devices.
However, this feature works on a frequency band which is not licensed in the country. This had previously question marks on the availability of the feature, but now Google has decided to avoid launching the device altogether.
Motion Sense is powered by Google’s Project Soli, which has been designed in-house to make smartphone experience touch-free.
Read the story here.
3. Nokia 7.2 Review: Can This Phone Compete With Xiaomi & Samsung?
HMD Global is back in the market with the Nokia 7.2 mid-range smartphone, and this time, the brand is hoping to catch the eye of buyers, with more cameras in tow.
The Nokia 7.2, priced at Rs 18,599 for the base variant promises stock Android experience, but till now, we’ve had issues with performance on Nokia’s mid-range phones, and that’s exactly what we wanted to test out during our review.
So, does the Nokia 7.2 stand a chance against the Xiaomi Redmi Note series, Samsung M30 or even the Realme phones in the highly competitive segment?
Read the review here to know the answer.
4. Indian Telcos Ready for 5G But Want Govt to Give the Final Push
This week at the India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2019 in Delhi, one thing became evident. Most telcos and solution providers are ready to enter the 5G arena in the country, only if the government decides to change its stance on how 5G will be brought over to India.
According to industry leaders, spectrum auction and pricing are two biggest concerns that need to be addressed for faster 5G roll out. And even though, Ravi Shankar Prasad, Union Minister of Communications and IT has given assurances about changing its stance on 5G spectrum prices, the industry would now like some action to be taken.
However, while the spectrum auctions are likely to be done within the current financial year, as confirmed by Prasad, analysts don’t see major 5G movements happening in the country, at least for the next few years.
Read the full story here.
5. Indian Govt Owned C-DOT Launches ‘Samvaad’ Secured Messaging App
With fake information spreading through messaging apps like WhatsApp, it is imperative that users are provided with secure platforms.
At the India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2019, on Tuesday, the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT), a government-owned entity has created its own version of secured messaging app called Samvaad that looks to offer features available on WhatsApp, to the enterprise consumers.
Speaking to The Quint on the sidelines of the event, C-DOT told us that the app won’t be available to the end user through Android or iOS app store, instead it will be made available to businesses, signing up for the platform through its sales channel.
Read the story here.
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