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Category: News

WhatsApp New Updates Adds Brand New Features To Transform App Experience

The latest WhatsApp new updates will bring the users a range of new features. First seen by WaBetaInfo, the new update is mainly for iPhone users through Apple’s App Store. Version number 2.19.10 will now allow the users to add stickers to photos and videos. They will now also be able to reply personally to individuals in group chats. In some cases, some of these features are already available for Android users. Users sending GIF, pictures, or videos via the app will be now able to add an emoji or a sticker. The uber-popular messaging app is all geared up for four new features set to release in 2020.

3D Touch technology

If you want to reach out privately to a user in the group chat, simply tap on the user’s name within the group chat. There is another feature that is specially designed to make use of the iPhone’s 3D Touch technology. This allows the user to see a preview of the status updates posted by their family and friends. This feature can only be enjoyed if your smartphone supports 3D Touch technology.

WhatsApp

Cryptocurrency and No Read Notification

When you check out someone’s status update, WhatsApp will not send the read receipt. You can make use of this to see the first status without sending the users any read notification. Indian users may rejoice since a WhatsApp cryptocurrency could soon be introduced in the Indian region. WhatsApp, as many of you may know, is owned by Facebook. The latter is working on cryptocurrency for the platform. The company first began working on a cryptocurrency after a high-level management reshuffle. The Independent heard from a Facebook spokesperson, “Like many other companies, Facebook is exploring ways to leverage the power of blockchain technology. This new small team is exploring many different applications.”

Security

Besides the other features, WhatsApp new updates will also soon gain the ability to allow you to protect your chats with a fingerprint. So far, this works only on Android smartphones. In addition to this, you will now be able to decide who can add you to a group chat. Users will also be able to respond privately to a message sent within a group chat. The developers have done their best to update the software so as to provide the users with a secure and comfortable experience. The effort is commendable although just how useful these features will be is yet to be seen.

Dark Mode

WhatsApp is also planning to bring a dark mode theme. While there have been speculations regarding it for a long time, it looks as if it is finally slated for a release this year. Besides the dark mode, WhatsApp has also been working on two looks – one in pitch black and the other in greyscale. The latter is designed to save battery, while the former is created to help users ease their eyes as they use their phones in low-light surroundings or at night. Facebook Messenger and Instagram also have a Dark Mode.

January 31, 2020
TeaTV Apk Gone! One Of The Largest Streaming Apps For Movies & TV Shows Shutdown.

From different reports, it appears that the main reason for the TeaTV app closure is because of their lack of advertising. While the app looked and felt official, it looks as if the developers were getting revenue from unlicensed content, such as streaming and more. Users would be able to easily watch a bootleg version of ultra-popular movies almost as soon as it is released. Most of these kinds of content are ones that are recorded from the back of a cinema. All one has to do is to download an app from the website, find the firm, and get it started. One catch here is that while the content is pirated, you will still have to go through the adverts.

Adverts and TeaTV

There are plenty of online platforms where you can easily lay hands on unauthorized content material. TeaTV is one of them. Known for having a large range of pirated films from main networks, the APK gained a lot of popularity. Users would find titles from HBO, Netflix, and Prime Film studios in addition to other streaming platforms. There have been advertisements showing for main advertisers with Walgreens, Amazon’s Fire TV, The Commerce Desk, Adroll, and so many more.

TeaTV

A Walgreens spokesperson said that they were not aware of the issue and they have a rule in place that does not allow adverts on websites with pirated content. The company mentioned that now that it has come to their attention, they are working to rectify the issue. It is a relatively easy task to have your unlicensed streaming in place. All one would really require is a server in a secret location where they would be able to store everything. By masking your IP address, they would also be able to ensure their safety. Comparatively speaking, their overhead amounts to almost nothing.

TeaTV

Users can select how they want to download the app to watch free 1080 movies. The download is available for Android, macOS, and Windows. It is believed that most companies are aware of the issue, but the adverts don’t stop. In a recent gathering of top industries in New York, TeaTV was discussed when the subject of ad-supported pirated content material came across.

TeaTV Content

There is no clue who is the owner or the managing entity behind TeaTV and the website is determined not to help us out in this matter as well. There are no contact details, nor any location mentioned there. The only thing you will be able to see is a Gmail address without any particular contact details. However, the developers’ Twitter account is highly active. This is where they help their users troubleshoot problems while sharing news about the latest releases.

While the unlicensed streaming industry is growing quickly, thankfully, there are organizations who are working to curb this. CreativeFuture is an advocacy group that works to work against content theft and maintain the intellectual property. They believe as much as $29.2 billion is misplaced within the U.S. economic system annually.

January 31, 2020
Viacom has silently launched the Android TV app Viacom 18 for Voot

Much-known Netflix has been in existence for a long time now. A period during which it has enjoyed a fairly good period at the top. But with new industries struggling to match up to Netflix’s business structure, little is known of how long the company may maintain its position at the top.

Viacom 18 Network has finally launched the popularly known Voot service for Android, IOS, and web.

Along with brand new content, the company has introduced a new parental lock feature, some content recommendation and an inventory that consists of 17000+ hours of the most popular shows from their own network and licensed properties.

The section of the on-demand television has been getting huge traffic of late with local programming platforms such as Hotstar gaining popularity within the region and other international players such as Netflix also breaking the market.

All about Viacom 18’s Platform

The Viacom 18’s platform hopes to make intends to take advantage of this slowly rising market and digging into its own wide array of content and making it public to most viewers.

The network offers diversity in content with a large library in comedy, drama, reality TV as well as kids shows. And the library isn’t limited either as it keeps growing gradually and offers a wide and broad future.

The Viacom network is also giving a big push having 4 original shows to its network. Some are already lined up and more are set to come with time.

The network is hoping to have a large and extensive library of content that is genuine and original.

The app also has a kids section that can be secured via a 4-digit PIN. This makes it easier to monitor what young ones are watching and filter and quarantine all that they shouldn’t watch.

It generally makes parental guidance easy to implement and less draining.

Along with that, there is also a “Mix It Up” feature in the kids’ section. It allows the viewers to shake the smartphone in order to switch the view and choose an alternative show.

Viacom 18 has also gone as far as to pay attention to the Social media aspect of show watching. Also, it has included the ability to give reactions to shows which can, later on, be highlighted as well.

Viacom 18 streaming Services

The app Viacom 18 sees this as a new step ahead of other channels. Also, it’s dedicated streaming services in highlighting individual user’s comments in the “Just For You” section.

This system will help review specific channels or shows. Also, it will recommend them to the user in relation to what they had either watched before or what they are watching regularly.

The app’s main method of income is through adverts. Because there are no premium forms are available as of now. Though there is a consideration that may take place for this kind of monetization.

In a nutshell, this app signifies the clear digital migration from cable TV to a more digitized on-demand streaming services module.

Conclusion

There is so much to say, as this is just a start for the channel. Hence, it is yet to see if this platform will one day be able to grow enough to compete in the big leagues with the likes of Netflix and local Hotstar.

January 30, 2020
TCL Has Set Date for MWC event

The 2020 MWC event is set to take place in Barcelona where TCL will introduce its latest smartphones and technologies. Invitations were sent to media worldwide that revealed the company will have a[ress conference on February 2020 at 18:00 local time.

The event is set to take place before the congress. This means that once the exhibition starts, visitors will be among the first to get their hands on the new TLC and Alcatel smartphones. Thus, it set to be from the 24^th to the 27^th of February.

Earlier this month, the company introduced its own branded smartphones the TCL 10 5G and the TCL 10L that were in the premium segment.

Both smartphones have been declared to have flat surfaces whereas the company’s other entry, the TCL 10 Pro is expected to have curved edges on the side.

Price Range and Features

All three entries are expected to have a quad-camera set up at the back that will be lined up horizontally (more like the galaxy 10 series).

The devices are expected to have a full range of upper-medium chipsets so do not be surprised to see a Snapdragon 865 in the TCL 10 Pro.

At the CES 2020 event, there were also four new Alcatel entries that were noticed. Hus the Alcatel 3L, the Alcatel 1S, the Alcatel 1V, and the Alcatel 1B. All of these were price tagged between $65 and $165 which is a modest price tag if you ask me.

Consumers are yet to see if the company may also add more devices to the Alcatel line or will just stick to updating its TCL 10 lineup as there wasn’t that much that was given during the CES convention.

There is so much expectation for the TCL brand and hopefully, the company will not disappoint.

Much like the previous years, the company is slowly making it a trend to release its phones during the late February period and I can’t say that it isn’t working for them though it is doing a great job for sales.

Competition between Counterparts

Alcatel is a communications device giant. And with so many smartphone companies emerging, there is just so much that the brand has to do to make sure it reclaims its position.

That being said, it is obviously going to take an immense amount of effort before it gains stage to compete with fellow counterparts such as Samsung. But let’s just hope that this new range of devices will help the company regain its status at the top of the throne.

If anything is to be said, this new TCL range of smartphones is something that’s fresh and maybe they may present a challenge to other smartphone brands that have existed over a while now.

Conclusion

No pressure or disrespect intended, but the company taking on this line has given TCL mobile industry some new big shoes to fill considering how successful the brand has been in the TV industry.

January 30, 2020
Show Box is officially gone- and this is all you need to know about it

Showbox is one of the most popular online streaming apps today. It has smooth UI and easy navigation and the way it offers so much at a cheap cost. The app stood out for a couple of reasons and went out of its way to deliver on some wonderful services during its run.

It is the best free alternative to subscription-based video streaming services out there. Some would even go as far as to say that it was better than most subscription-based alternative program platforms that are there today.

Some news of Showbox

Sadly, news came that Showbox would be shutting down for good. The application which served more than a million users worldwide is closing its doors.

Rumors have been spread that various production companies forced the developers and promoters of Showbox to discontinue the support of the app.

According to sources from TorrentFreak, the production company requested Cloudflare to reveal the identities of operators behind various support sites to the application.

They further filed a lawsuit against the various websites which promoted the app which eventually led to the sudden disappearance of the app from various ShowBox promoting applications.

Most of these sites keep giving a legitimacy warning message that contains a lot of words but eventually just leads to a sue threat.

However, we all know that the internet is nothing less of an ocean that runs wild and free and there is very little that can be controlled. Eventually, the app will just pop up anywhere maybe with a different name and logo who knows?

But for now, the application has been officially termed illegal in most support sites and most support has been pulled from it.

Is Showbox Legal or Can one get in trouble for downloading it?

Over the past, there have been many unauthorized streaming apps that have been shut down. It is just to be reincarnated into new applications with new names and new logos.

The Showbox app is no different from these such applications and as much as there can be a lot of visible barriers that would make it get locked off of view from a lot of people, there is the certainty that it will find its way back to the spotlights again.

Whereas this is the app, streaming content illegally is a punishable offense and many states have different rules and legislations about it.

Conclusion

However, the government often targets the publishers of these such apps to curb the root cause of the problem. Therefore, chances are that you probably won’t be touched in case you have the app. However, it will depend if you will manage to get in the first place.

Sadly, the Showbox app had to go but there are a couple of apps that do not match the Showbox app but will offer you almost the same amount of services.

January 30, 2020
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip leak points to a tiny secondary display

By now, the majority of people already know that Samsung is working on a second folding phone. This second phone has sparked a lot of rumors and enthusiasm as opposed to the previous model.

With these many rumors, it is hard to know what will actually make it to the final cut of release. Also, about what will be retained. All that is certain is that it is being worked on and if it goes by anything is going to be a clamshell design just like the much speculated Motorola Razr that is also set to launch this year.

The design and feel are something new and fresh and is definitely going to wow lots of people.

What most of us probably know by now is that the new device is going to feature a glass screen and is going to be a 5G compatible smartphone.

New Leaks and all about Samsung Galaxy Z Flip

New leaks, however, determine that the new Z Flip phone is set to have a capacitative fingerprint scanner on the side. Hence, it proves to be a really interesting take on the whole aspect of the phone.

There are also rumors of 12MP dual cameras both wide and ultra-wide. Also, in addition to the 15w charging system that allows wireless charging and reverses wireless charging.

Look, with this new tech kind of specs, you’d obviously expect the device to be a new kind of beast and that is just an understatement. If you look at what other companies are bringing onto the table with this kind of foldable devices.

It seems that the past is slowly going to be incorporated into our new day modern tech and this type of tech is just the beginning.

Features of Samsung Galaxy Z Flip

There’s also been a lot of uncertainty that has surrounded the phone’s initial cameras with rumors spawning features such as 108MP sensors. These are claims that have existed right from when the speculation of the device first got into ears.

The phone is also set to feature a confirmed Samsung Ultra-Thin Glass which has a crease and even more exciting, a Dynamic Amoled Display.

This is just a phone to be admired people and there is just so much expectation that you can put into Samsung’s devices.

Mid last year, the company released its first foldable phone. I will be honest at first it had a lot of issues, but the company finally came back and redid the phone. They had eliminated the mistakes that they had earlier made. And now they are coming back with a complete foldable phone with improvements.

Conclusion

So now, you are sure that this is not the first time they are designing something of this sort. They have done it before and managed to come up with a device that is both beautiful and responsive.

There is just so much that is to be expected of this new device and we can for sure bank on Samsung to deliver on a large scale.

January 30, 2020
OxygenOS 10.3.1 out the OnePlus 6 and the Oneplus 6t
This mainly rings one key thing in the brain; Bug Fixes. And if this update is anything to go by then this is mainly what there is to it.

There was a lot of trouble with the initial rollout of the Android 10 update for the OnePlus 6 and 6T. this mainly included a black screen issue when unlocking with the fingerprint sensor, the device heated up while charging and there were a number of reports on some random disconnections when using a 5Ghz hotspot.

Good thing the company listened to the complaints and decided to roll out an update that would fix these issues.

OnePlus Announcement

OnePlus announced on the 21^st of January this year, the OxygenOS 10.3.1 update for both the OnePlus 6T and OnePlus 6 models.

The company announced the usual general bug fixes and improvements on system stability. The new version is also bringing with it several improvements. The issue with the black screen appearing after unlocking the devices via fingerprint. Also, and one of the most dominant problems, the random disconnections after using the 5Ghz hotspot.

In addition, there are more fixes on the device like-
1. 1. Heating up whenever while charging the device. It was also another honest bother
  2. The camera, and gallery, which is the main cause of the camera crashing problem.
  3. Issues with images and videos being unevenly displayed in the gallery app.
Besides that, the OxygenOS 10.3.1 update, it also updated the new android security update patch to 2019.12.

I feel that the company honestly did some good work with the two devices. However, they seriously made plenty of flaws by not recognizing these flaws in the initial device launch.

These bugs and fixes should have been dealt with a long time before the launch of the device. Some of these are pretty noticeable. Hence, for a company as big as OnePlus to say this is a disappointment would be an understatement.

Advantage and praising of New Update

But, the good thing is the company did not display any narcissistic attitude to the complaints and reviews and owned up to their mistakes.

They rolled out this new update and it is impressive how they managed to get everything into a scope and fix it. The company further promised to continue releasing updates. Hence, that would better their devices’ user experience and promised to deliver on more accurate releases.

We hope to see them implement these promises in their future devices and I personally can’t wait to see what they do with their upcoming OnePlus 8 that is rumored to come around the first half of this year.

All in all, OnePlus is an awesome trademark that struggles to deliver on its promises of better user experience and reliable devices. Most of its devices may be high end, but boy don’t they put some serious and mean specs under the hood.

Conclusion

It wouldn’t be a surprise that with this growing trend, the OnePlus may gain enough guts that would give companies such as Apple a run for their money in the near future.
January 30, 2020
Google’s Live Caption Quietly Brought to The Pixel 2

If you are a fun of last year’s Google flagship the Pixel 4, then chances are that you have probably heard of Googles Live Caption feature. And if you haven’t gotten your hands on the Pixel 4 and happen to have a Pixel 2 lying around then you are in luck.

Google is known for its ability to follow through on rolling out updates for its previous devices despite having new devices in the market so the Pixel 2 is no different from the rest in any special way.

What is Live Caption

Now, a majority of reviews covered this aspect last year as it was one of the features that were supposed to make the Pixel 4 sell a lot.

Google’s Live Caption is a feature in the Google Pixel phones that adds locally generated captions to all video and audio content on the phone. It was mainly rolling out to help people who have hearing problems and whatnot. but it is growing as a trademark of the Pixel series.

The update of Google’s Live Caption feature was earlier backported to the Pixel 3 series. It is including the 3a and was speculated to be rolled out to more Pixel devices.

Google was pretty silent about an update but that didn’t stop Pixel users from hoping and being expectant.

The Update That Changed It All

Reddit user Yashredy was supposedly the first to notice the update that brought the service onto both the Pixel 2 and the Pixel 2 XL.

After that, a lot more users started claiming that they had actually experienced the same feature in their Pixel 2 and XL devices. This was discovered off of the latest device personalization services Apk that was manually installed by the users.

The company must have noticed this and started development immediately. Then a while later we finally have the update that has confirmed it.

This is to means that there need not be any hacks or official APKs to have the feature on your Pixel 2 devices.

I think it’s honestly nice that Google is coming through on their promise of delivering phones that would receive updates equally as their new devices.

Google promised a line of devices that will not limit the user and make them feel shortchanged especially UI-wise.

It is fair to say that they have tried their best to deliver on this promise as they constantly roll out updates to all their devices regardless of the time stamp within which it was found.

The company is not making any announcement for the update. Hence, it is really discrete of them considering how much hope is on the company’s official updates.

Conclusion

The feature is available now on the Pixel 2 and the Pixel 2XL phones. If you are like me and you are not patient enough to wait for the server-side rollout you are free to download the required personalization services from side-load sites.

January 30, 2020
Messaging app ToTok pulled from Play Store following reports of government surveillance.

There have been reports of government surveillance in last year’s most downloaded chatting app ToTok. The application was highly downloaded and installed off of Google’s Play Store towards the end of December and was pulled down a while afterward. Even Apple Stores pulled the application down.

Researchers are claiming that the application’s messaging business model is a façade. Hence, it was designed to automatically document information from the users that are extremely personal. The information are including such as conversations, movements, relationships, sounds photos, and even appointments.

Now, before this app, there have been lots of speculations concerning personal and private information. It is being leaked and fed to the government for years now. In fact, most modern movies have taken on these theories and even games have been made off of this.

Nowadays there is a lot of concern about having your information leaked. As we all know that privacy is highly considerable personal’s right. This is why the online app stores that were airing the app had to pull it down once they ad information that the app had been breaching the terms of service.

Adding Further To This

Researchers also suspect, that the brainchild behind the application. Breej Holding, is closely in association with the well-renowned intelligence and hacking agency. Also, DarkMatter, which has been under surveillance by the FBI for a while now.

Before the ToTok application was pulled off of the online markets, it had a relatively huge number of downloads. Also, it had taken its toll on places such as North America, the Middle East, Asia, Africa, and Europe.

As much as the app has been pulled off of the topmost online markets in the globe, the application itself has not been closed. This means that users who had already installed the app on their smartphones can still use it.

However, do not expect any updates through the Google Play Store. But, it is clear advice to all the users, since the app is most likely used to collect personal information, users ought to uninstall it at once.

The developers of the ToTok application even went further to acknowledge the allegations but did absolutely nothing to deny the claims that were made against the chatting app.

They further released a follow-up statement saying that they were working with both Google and Apple stores to address the concerns. The developers claim that the pull down from the two app stores is just a temporary obstacle.

The users are facing the problem due to the “technical issues”. However, they are still hoping that soon the application will work well. Also, it may available to users after some necessary editings and corrections.

Bottom Lines

As a personal advice, there are a lot of speculations over incidences such as this. There are a lot of trending applications and topics that have been allowed in the past only to come back and bite the owner in the back.

In today’s technological world, it is important to mind what you access and what accesses you. Always have applications that have genuine licenses and have truthful end-user agreements.

January 30, 2020
Huawei’s Alternative to Google Maps

It’s no surprise that Huawei and the U.S. have had their fair share of controversies for a while now. This has led to the ban on Huawei in the United States. So, the thing threatens the partnership between the company and U.S. based Google. As a result, Huawei’s alternative to Google Maps news is rolling out on the internet.

Deal with Dutch Digital Mapping

Huawei has since then been searching for alternatives to the services. Therefore, they got off of Google, which has also included the development of a new alternative Operating System to that of Google’s Android.

Now the company has gone further to sign a deal with the Dutch digital mapping company TomTom. It will help Huawei to put maps on its phones.

Apparently, the deal was closed some time ago and was only made public on the 19^th of January 2020.

TomTom maintains a number of self-branded applications on both IOS and Android operating systems. Huawei still hopes to build a variety of its applications with TomTom’s traffic and map information.

Full-fledged mapping system

Previous reports have also claimed that the Chinese mobile phone company is building a full-fledged mapping system that will work as an alternative to the Google Maps feature in Android devices.

This software would obviously be made available for application developers and is said to be using data from Huawei’s own telecom base stations in collaboration with Russian tech giant Yandex.

The TomTom deal could mean that the Chinese company needs an alternative solution while they develop on their own map system or that the company is just backing away from the deal altogether.

Either way, tables have been set and signatures have been exchanged so there’s no backing down now.

More About Huawei’s Alternative to Google Maps

Huawei had a good run while it had access to Google services. Also, it did a fairly good job with the system too until the Trump administration placed a couple of sanctions on the company. Last year that threatened its ties with American tech companies.

For now, the company is still using the Android operating system. However, the future of this partnership is still unclear which has led the company to develop its own Harmony OS.

The one thing that’s sure is that the new state of things makes it difficult to predict the future of the Chinese company, even TomTom is now going to have to depend less on Google and have to come out as a Huawei counterpart.

Phones By Huawei

Most of the phones that are currently releasing by Huawei. It is still bearing the Google Android tag and has a lot of Google’s features. Hence, the new change in Huawei’s devices is yet to be seen. We expect these new changes in the near future when Huawei releases its new flagship devices.

It s also unclear if current Huawei owners will have their devices shut down or not so yet again we just want to see how things will play out.

Conclusion

Who knows, maybe this small misunderstanding can be brought to a halt in future so that we can continue enjoying clean and smart Huawei devices (and no am not talking in terms of Sony’s spiderman scenario- or am I).

January 30, 2020