Leaked Xiaomi Mi 11 Pro details point to a QHD curved display with a punch-hole and a 120 Hz refresh rate

Xiaomi has released a lot of flagships this year, but they all have their compromises. The Mi 10 Ultra may well be the jewel in the crown, but Xiaomi does not sell it outside of China. The Mi 10T Pro is the company’s most recent flagship, but it pairs a 144 Hz refresh rate with IPS display technology, rather than the richer AMOLED technology that it uses in other smartphones like the Mi 10 Pro. The latter impressed us when we reviewed it earlier this year, but its 90 Hz refresh rate pales in comparison to newer flagships with AMOLED screens. These three Xiaomi smartphones are all restricted to 1080p too, which is not much of a flagship resolution these days.

The Mi 11 Pro may change all of that though, according to Digital Chat Station. Last month, the leaker claimed that Xiaomi had purchased a ‘2K high refresh screen’, which they have now expanded upon. Apparently, the Mi 11 Pro will have a curved screen and a punch-hole, just like the Mi 10 Pro did this year. Digital Chat Station adds that the size of the punch-hole will be comparable to the one in the Mi 10 Pro, which is about as large as other punch-holes.

A 1440p (QHD) resolution and a 120 Hz refresh rate would be an improvement from the 1080p and 90 Hz panel in the Mi 10 Pro, though. Additionally, the Mi 11 Pro is expected to feature the Snapdragon 875 chipset, which Qualcomm is expected to announce next month. Hence, the Mi 11 Pro should offer a healthy performance over the Mi 10 Pro, too.

An early OnePlus Nord 2 leak purports to spill some important specs for the phone

OnePlus Nord news and rumors is flying in at present. This series of smartphones has been augmented with the budget N10 and N100 models. Furthermore, leaks pointing to an upcoming new variant have now been joined with hints of another. This one is not an SE model, but a full-fledged successor to the original flagship allegedly planned to launch in 2021.

It will apparently be called the OnePlus Nord 2, although the code-name denniz has also been mentioned. As the first generation’s own nick-name was avicii, to honor the late Swedish DJ, the 2 may have been called after another: Denniz Pop.

This Nord 2 is also now said to have the Snapdragon 775 or 775G as an SoC. It is also projected to have a screen with a high refresh rate: as the Nord has one at 90Hz, it is possible this could step up to 120Hz in its successor. Similarly, the 2 is touted to have a charging speed of at least 30 watts.

This, in OnePlus terms, means Warp Charge 30, although there may just be scope for the 65 version instead in a next-gen premium mid-ranger., Finally, the Nord 2 is (reasonably) predicted to run OxygenOS 11 out of the box.

UserBenchmark reveals one of Intel’s upcoming and 8-core Tiger Lake-H processors

Tiger Lake-H has reared its head on UserBenchmark. The follow-up to Comet Lake-H is yet to be unveiled, but Tiger Lake-H is expected to mark the move from 14 nm to 10 nm for Intel’s 45 W processors. The laptop on UserBenchmark has benchmarked as ‘Insyde TigerLake’, denoting that it is probably a prototype of sorts. The machine has also been equipped with 20 GB of DDR4-3,200 RAM, an unusual combination for laptops. Additionally, UserBenchmark reports a base clock of 3.1 GHz and an average boost clock of 2.75 GHz, more indicators that this is a prototype or an engineering sample.

The entry indicates that the Tiger Lake-H processor supports Hyper-Threading, which is unsurprising. The processor also has eight cores, which Intel confirmed would be the maximum core count for the Tiger Lake-H series. Rumour has it that Intel will offer Tiger Lake-H processors with four and six cores, as it already does with the Comet Lake-H series. 

However, Tiger Lake-H processors will supposedly come with TDPs ranging from 35 W to 65 W, with a 45 W TDP offered for six-core SKUs. Similarly, Intel will utilise multiple iGPUs for the Tiger Lake-H series. All SKUs will have Iris Xe GPUs, but 35 W SKUs will be stuck with 32 Execution Units (EUs). By contrast, 45 W and 65 W processors will have 96 EUs.

Intel Tiger Lake-H-based notebooks are expected in the first half of 2021. However, it is unclear when Intel will unveil the Tiger Lake-H architecture.

Google announces a Barely Blue limited edition version of the Pixel 4a

Google has had a somewhat pared-back yea, having opted against releasing a smartphone with a flagship SoC. Nonetheless, it has now unveiled a new colour option of the Pixel 4a, having dropped some heavy hints on its Instagram account over the weekend. The new colour is called Barely Blue, and appears to be the colour that two French retailers listed in June. There are some major caveats to its release, though.

For the time being, the Barely Blue model will only be available in the US. Android Authority claims that Google will begin selling the Barely Blue Pixel 4a in Japan from early 2021. However, Google will also only sell it as an unlocked handset.

Finally, the Barely Blue edition will only be available while stocks last. Apparently, there will be no restocks once it sells out. Google has priced the new colour option at US$349 but has not indicated how many units it has produced.

The XtendTouch Pro is the world’s first portable 15.6-inch AMOLED touchscreen monitor promising 10-bit color, full DCI-P3 coverage, and 4K resolution

Though we’ve checked out a bunch of portable monitors in the past, the XtendTouch Pro XT1610UO from Pepper Jobs is one of the first with an AMOLED panel. AMOLED technology offers significant advantages over standard IPS including much faster response times, higher contrast ratios, and deeper colors that digital artists can appreciate. The manufacturer has sent us a pre-production sample for our initial thoughts and impressions on the monitor. 

Most portable monitors are notable for being fragile like the Lepow or Auzai ME16Z01. To our surprise, however, the XtendTouch Pro manages to be both rigid and light at just 850 g without its faux leather cover (or 1.35 kg with the cover on). The glass front contributes to the inflexibility of the unit for a high quality feel even if the back is matte plastic.

Port options are decent as the monitor integrates mini-HDMI and multiple USB-C ports. Nonetheless, some other portable monitors like the C-Force CF011C are able to integrate full-size USB-A and HDMI ports which are arguably more user-friendly. Most users will have to rely on mini-HDMI or USB-C adapters for the XtendTouch Pro.

The OSD is one of the best we’ve seen on any portable monitor. It’s easy to navigate, the texts and controls are large, and there are plenty of customizable options. The button along the left edge to initiate the OSD, however, could have been larger and less spongy.

Display quality is a mixed bag. On paper, AMOLED displays can offer very accurate colors and deep black levels, but the main problem on the XtendTouch Pro is that its AMOLED panel has not been properly calibrated at factory. In other words, users will likely have to calibrate their displays themselves to get the most out of the portable monitor since colors and RGB balance are not great out of the box. This may change when the XtendTouch Pro is ready for mass production, but we can only share our experiences with the unit we have here.

Our X-Rite colorimeter reveals an overly warm color temperature and an average grayscale deltaE value of 4.1 as shown by our screenshots below. Calibrating the panel ourselves fixes these issues by flattening the RGB balance curve, bringing gamma closer to the sRGB ideal of 2.2, increasing the color temperature, and reducing deltaE grayscale to as low as 1.1. Unfortunately, contrast ratio is unusually low at just ~350:1 which is not normal for an AMOLED panel. We tried switching to different preset color profiles including sRGB, AdobeRGB and DCI-P3, but contrast ratio would not improve.

The brightness setting does not appear to be working as intended on our pre-production unit. At 0 percent and 100 percent, brightness is just 216 and 389 nits, respectively. Keep in mind that the manufacturer is advertising a maximum brightness of 650 nits which we are unable to reproduce. We used the included USB-C cable and docking station to power our monitor prior to running these tests.

Response times and gamut seem to be on the money as advertised by the manufacturer. Our own readings reveal black-white and gray-gray response times of under 2 ms each to be faster than any IPS solution. Users can expect full AdobeRGB and DCI-P3 coverage which most other portable displays cannot offer. Refresh rate, however, is limited to 60 Hz whereas IPS panels designed for gaming can go upwards of 144 Hz or more.

A major downside to the XtendTouch Pro is that its docking station is very heavy at 667 g. Though well-made, the dock is not as travel-friendly as most other AC adapters for smartphones or Ultrabooks. The last thing we need is more AC adapters for different devices when on-the-go.

We tried connecting our Huawei Mate 10 Pro smartphone to the monitor, but we couldn’t get a picture at all even after connecting a second USB-C cable for additional power. In comparison, our smartphone worked without any issues on the C-Force CF011C.

The XtendTouch Pro XT1610UO looks promising even if our engineering sample still has a few kinks to iron out. Its $700 USD retail price is quite hefty when you consider that most larger professional desktop monitors also cost at least that much. Thankfully, the manufacturer is already aware of the panel issues even prior to our testing which gives hope of a better visual experience when the monitor launches. We know AMOLED is capable of so much more than what we’ve seen here.

Realme confirms an Indian launch for the X7 and X7 Pro

One of the most interesting things about mobile tech in 2020 is the rise of the Dimensity SoC series. MediaTek has managed to develop these 5G processors in order to target numerous tiers of the smartphone market that might otherwise be dominated by the same few Snapdragon equivalents, while also providing some arguably necessary competition in the same spaces. On the other hand, the intriguing (and increasingly well-priced) devices based on these processors have rarely made it out of what is often their home market of China.

Now, Realme has affirmed it is working on changing that with the launch of the X7 series in a new market. These phones may be a big hit there, particularly as the Pro variant rocks the highest-end Dimensity 1000+ chipset and a 120Hz AMOLED display.

The vanilla model also offers the lesser-spotted Dimensity 800U. Given these specs, it is a slight shame that they will only reach India by 2021. Realme India’s CEO, Madhav Sheth, has stated that this is indeed the case in a recent tweet.

Then again, the executive also mentioned that the X7s are just the tip of the incoming Realme 5G-berg in India. Therefore, more potentially Dimensity-powered phones making it to this market may improve the chances that they will also start gravitating towards others in the near future.

Sapphire Radeon RX 6800 & RX 6800 XT Nitro+ now up for pre-order

Sapphire Tech has quite a few video cards based on the Radeon RX 6800 and Radeon RX 6800 XT, with most of them going above and beyond the specs and design of the reference models introduced by AMD. Now, three such video cards can be pre-ordered from Finnish retailer Multitronic, all of them being overclocked variants with custom cooling solutions.

The three models listed by the aforementioned retailer and their prices are the following:

Sapphire Radeon RX 6800 XT Nitro+ OC SE, 863.9 Euros (roughly US$1,020)

Sapphire Radeon RX 6800 XT Nitro+ OC Gaming, 838.90 Euros (around US$990)

Sapphire Radeon RX 6800 Nitro+ Gaming OC, 732.90 Euros (approximately US$870)

Before turning red because these prices seem outrageous, our non-EU readers should keep in mind that these are preliminary prices and there is also a rather large VAT included (Finland has a standard VAT rate of 24%, which applies to computer parts as well). Unfortunately, there is no shipment date mentioned in the listings, but it will probably take at least one or two weeks after the launch scheduled by AMD and some of its partners to take place on December 8.

Does the Redmi 9A reveal too many compromises in the test compared to the Redmi Note 9?!

In our test, the Redmi 9A presents itself as a successful low-budget smartphone that can be purchased already for significantly less than 100 Euros (~$118). The workmanship is good, the battery life very long, and the equipment is convincing for a very affordable smartphone. In addition, the IPS panel offers solid viewing angles and a good color reproduction.

However, compared to the Redmi 9 and Redmi Note 9 sibling models, you have to accept some compromises. While customers in China have the choice between various models with up to 6 GB of RAM, in this country (Germany) users have to be content with the Redmi 9A with the small amount of working memory. In this regard, the Redmi 9 and Note 9 are able to score with twice as much RAM, which becomes positively noticeable in everyday usage. In addition, Xiaomi has equipped its low-budget smartphone with a fairly weak MediaTek processor, the new Helio G25.

The system of the 9A model does not always run smoothly and there are often some delays. Due to the slow eMMC storage, the load times are also significant. Particularly the Mali-G52 MP2 of the Helio G80 or G85, which is inside the Redmi 9 and Note 9 sibling models, offers significantly more GPU performance and ensures considerably more gaming fun and higher frame rates in combination with the 1080p panel. 

So you have to take a critical look at the question whether the slightly lower purchase costs of the Redmi 9A are worthwhile when possibly using it for several years. A Redmi 9 or Redmi Note 9 would offer a noticeably better overall package for the extra amount of currently 20 or 40 Euros (~$24 or $47) respectively.

If you would like to get a more detailed impression on the Redmi 9A, we recommend our review of the Xiaomi smartphone.

The Surface Pro 3 has 1 more year of official support

Microsoft has made its firmware and driver update schedule for Surface devices public. It shows how long each individual product still has in terms of official support. Some, such as the RT ot Pro 2, have already seen this end-of-service date come and go.

Others are yet to see the next upcoming date for their obsolescence. This is November 13, 2021, on which the Surface Pro 3 to Pro 5/2017 will cease to receive updates. This means that the 3 will get a total of 7 years of support. This is slightly confusing, as its immediate successor, the 4, also ends its life cycle on the same date, as does the first-gen Surface Book.

Howver, most devices on the list get a more constant 4 years of updates. They include the Surface Pro 6 and 7; the Go 1 and 2; the Laptops 2 to 3 and the Pro X. Microsoft has stated that it has posted this information in response to feedback from customers who want to plan upgrades for their devices in accordance with the new list.

ZTE Blade V2020: Smartphones don’t need to be expensive anymore

If a smartphone isn’t launched with the latest technology, it has little impact on the performance behind it. The reason for this is SoCs that may be significantly older than a year but belonged to the mid-range at the time and, therefore, still deliver enough performance for modern applications even today.

This is also the case with the ZTE Blade V2020, since it’s equipped with the MediaTek Helio P70 that was released in April 2019, which in turn is accompanied by an ARM Mali-G72 MP3 graphics unit. For under 300 Euros (~$355), the manufacturer also packs 128 GB of storage space and 4 GB of RAM into the smartphone. A hybrid slot allows the choice between using two nano SIMs or a microSD card.

In addition to solid WLAN and camera performance, the Blade V2020 also shows good results in our benchmark tests. Here, the strongest competitor is the Xiaomi Poco X3 NFC, which scores better in almost all aspects. Compared to the rest of the competition in this price range, however, the ZTE smartphone manages to assert itself.

Thanks to its large and bright display, it can be used comprehensively. Even users with sensitive eyes may be happy here, as PWM is limited to a very high frequency of 63,290 Hz and only kicks in at brightness levels below 23%. This makes the built-in IPS panel much easier on the eyes than most current OLED panels. More details and further information can be found in our review of the ZTE Blade V2020.