Apple has been rolling out one update after the other lately. After releasing the iOS 11.1.2 update just last week, the company has already started rolling out the beta version of the iOS 11.2 upgrade. Which mean, iOS 11.2 is being tested, and can be expected to be out soon.

In the update, as reported by MacRumors, Apple is rolling out faster wireless charging support for the iPhone X and iPhone 8. The report confirms that 7.5W charging is available in the latest iOS 11.2 beta. As of now, the iPhone X and iPhone 8 support the slowest Qi charging speed of 5W.

However, in line with the iOS 11.2 beta update, Apple had promised at the time of launch that the faster 7.5W speed would be coming later on. It was earlier believed that the update for faster wireless charging will come with Apple’s own AirPower mat, which is said to came out sometime in 2018, but basis today’s report, that isn’t true. 

Also, the 7.5W speed seems to be available for any Qi charger that supports the higher output, and not just on Apple’s two approved pads from Belkin and Mophie. While there is no official word from Apple as to when can we expect a full public release of iOS 11.2, but considering the beta is out now, we can expect it to be out sometime in the next few weeks. 

The news of beta release comes barely a week after the iOS 11.1.2 update, which primarily brought fixes for the iPhone X. The most important patch that the update did was to the awkward issue of the iPhone X turning unresponsive in cold weather. The other patch in the update fixed the issue that could cause distortion in Live Photos and videos captured with iPhone X. 

Chinese smartphone player Xiaomi has become the fifth largest smartphone brand in Russia during Q3 2017, according to the latest research from Counterpoint’s Market Monitor service.

“Xiaomi grew by 325 percent YoY and was the fastest growing smartphone brand in Russia in both online as well as offline sales,” the Associate Director at Counterpoint Research (Counterpoint Technology Market Research), Tarun Pathak, said in a statement.

Smartphone shipments in Russia grew by 7 percent annually and 38 percent sequentially during Q3 2017. “The Russian handset market grew during this quarter driven by aggressive marketing campaigns by new Chinese brands and subsequent price cuts from all the leading retail chains as consumer spending during third quarter of the year normally remains high due to the new academic year and a ‘back-to-school’ uptick,” said Minakshi Sharma, Research Associate at Counterpoint Research (Counterpoint Technology Market Research).

The online channel smartphone contribution has increased from 12 percent to 15 percent YoY in Russia. During this quarter, Xiaomi and Apple were among the leading smartphone brands in online sales. 

“Apple reached record sales during the third quarter, growing 56 percent YoY due to a drop in the prices of its previous generation iPhone models, prior to the launch of the new iPhones,” Pathak said.

Samsung led the overall and smartphone market with market shares of 20 percent and 29 percent respectively during Q3 2017. Global brands captured almost 58 percent of the smartphone market followed by Chinese brands with 32 percent market share.

Xiaomi (325 percent), Bright and Quick (177 percent) and Huawei (140 percent) were the fastest growing Chinese brands YoY. However, local smartphone brands like Tele2 and Prestigio grew by 61 percent and 54 percent QoQ respectively.

This year saw a sudden influx of reports about smartphones heating up or batteries exploding. Now a frayed iPhone charger appears to have caused the death of a 14-year-old girl in Vietnam. Immediate reports do point to electrocution as the cause of death, but investigations are on, and Apple is yet to respond to the matter.

The deceased, Le Thi Xoan, hailed from the Hoan Kiem district of the capital city Hanoi in Vietnam. The 14-year-old was found unconscious in her room by her parents after, and soon after she was rushed to a nearby hospital. However, she couldn’t be revived by the doctors. After examination, the doctors declared that she had died due to electrocution, Yahoo News UK reports. Police officials upon investigating the matter suspect that it could have been her iPhone’s frayed charger that might have electrocuted her.

The victim was known to plug her Apple iPhone 6, and keep it on her bed for charging every night. It appears that she might have followed the same routine that night, and may have touched the exposed wires while the iPhone was charging. According to the image provided, the iPhone charger cable is seen with the edges near the connector frayed. A transparent tape is also visible which she must have used to cover the exposed wires. 

It isn’t known yet if the iPhone charger used is indeed Apple’s or whether it was bought from a third-party seller. The report further states that this iPhone charger is smaller than the original 20-inch cable that Apple provides. However, Apple’s chargers are known to fray quite easily, and that too within a relatively short time of usage. Nevertheless, this case yet again proves the dangers of using damaged chargers, and also charging your smartphones at night. 

The most anticipated feature of the iPhone X was its edge-to-edge OLED display. This also meant that Apple has to integrate Face ID which replaced the Touch ID fingerprint recognition system on the iPhone X. Despite multiple criticisms, Apple assured that Face ID is safe and secure enough. Contrary to Apple‘s claims, security firm Bkav has managed to trick the iPhone X’s Face ID with an artificial mask.

In a video released by Bkav, the company demonstrates using a mask to unlock the iPhone X. The mask is artificially made to imitate the device owner. The smartphone is kept in front of the mask which is covered at first. Face ID is already integrated on the device, and so it asks for the pass code at first. On opening the sheet, the iPhone X is immediately unlocked after it scans the artificial mask. Bkav concludes in the video that unlike what Apple says, Face ID is not as secure as is claimed.

Bkav, in a Q&A post also explains the works behind the creation of the mask. The security firm says that since it understands how Apple’s AI works, it could manipulate it. People have tried making masks in the past but were unsuccessful in tricking Face ID. It also states how the Face ID isn’t very strict in recognizing as it will unlock the device by scanning just half your face. Bkav itself just needed half a face to create the mask which is made using 3D and 2D printers. It cost the company $150 (approximately Rs 9,800) to make the mask.

Apple hasn’t responded on this matter as yet. This brings into light the claims made by Apple of Face ID being able to distinguish between a real face and a mask. Apple even said that it worked with professional mask makers and makeup artists to make Face ID mask-proof. But it appears that Face ID can be manipulated, although with some effort. Bkav says that fingerprint recognition is the safest security system for smartphones as of now.

Apple released iOS 11 for iPhones, iPads and iPod Touch back in September. The OS upgrade brought with it changes, features and improvements for these devices. Of the new changes, the Bluetooth and Wi-Fi toggles on Control Center was quite confusing for many users. Toggling off Wi-Fi and Bluetooth from the Control Center actually didn’t actually turn off these features. Apple, in the next iOS 11.2 release will feature popups to make people aware of these changes.

First reported by MacRumors, Apple released the third version of its upcoming iOS 11.2. In the beta version, when toggling off Wi-Fi or Bluetooth from the Control Center popups would be initiated. These popups will explain the user what exactly happens on when these switches are toggled off. For Wi-Fi, the popup message reads, “The current Wi-Fi network and others nearby will be disconnected until tomorrow. Wi-Fi will continue to be available for AirDrop, Personal Hotspot, and location accuracy”.

As for Bluetooth connectivity, the popup screen has this message – “Currently connected accessories will be disconnected and other accessories will not connect. Bluetooth will continue to be available for Apple Watch, Apple Pencil, Personal Hotspot, and Handoff”. These popup messages will be shown only when you the Wi-Fi and Bluetooth toggles are used for the first time on Control Center. Later, only the headline of the popup message will appear on top. Apple’s explanation of turning off Bluetooth and Wi-Fi temporarily is so that users can still connect to AirDrop, AirPlay, Apple Pencil, Apple Watch, Hotspot and Location Services. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth will be enabled again if toggled from the Control Center, if it’s 5:00AM local time, and if you restart the device. Going to a new location will also enable Wi-Fi connectivity, and adding a new Bluetooth accessory for Bluetooth. Disabling these services would require you to go to Settings and turn off directly.

A master plan has been drawn, and the profits have been marked. Turns out, among the many who rushed to Apple stores yesterday to get their hands-on the new iPhone X, some had bigger plans than you would think. Reportedly, some people have purchased the new iPhone X, only to re-sell it for a fat margin.

The idea being that a busy person who doesn’t want to wait in line will spend the extra money, just to get ahold of the new iPhone now. This strategy of buyers can also be owed to the reports of slim deliveries of iPhone X this time. Reportedly, this time around Apple has sent out a very limited delivery of the new iPhones to Apple store, and the resellers, leaving many unhappy.

The iPhone X is the most expensive iPhone so far, with the 64GB base variant priced at Rs 89,000. The 256GB variant retails at a whopping Rs 102,000.

However, on eBay India, a 64GB variant of the iPhone X, which otherwise costs Rs 89,000, is selling for as high as Rs 148,000. The iPhone X 256GB variant, on the other hand, has the highest quoted price of Rs 170,000.

The same is the story abroad. According to a report by USA Today, as opposed to the $999 price of the iPhone X in the US, some are re-selling the device for up to $2,000 on sites like eBay. The publication shares about one such buyer, who planned to buy two units and raise enough money to buy a 15-inch MacBook Pro, which starts at $2,400.

“In fact, prices on re-sale sites are all over the map, as low as $1,450 for opening bid prices on eBay, to as high as $6, 710, for both the entry level model with 64 GB of storage, and the 256 GB editions,” the publication reports. 

The much-awaited iPhone X finally went on sale globally across 55 countries including India. The 10th anniversary edition of the iPhone, the iPhone X, features a radical design change and boasts new technologies. In India, the iPhone X was open to customers for purchase at 6:00PM across retail stores and online via Amazon India and Flipkart. BGR India visited Apple resellers in Mumbai and Noida to see what kind of response the iPhone X garnered.

In Noida, we visited iZenica store located in Mall of India. Contrary to the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus launch, the iPhone X launch witnessed a longer and bigger queue. The iPhone X is the most expensive iPhone so far, with the 64GB base variant priced at Rs 89,000. The 256GB variant retails at a whopping Rs 102,000. The response was quite big considering the fact that people had been lined up waiting for almost two hours. Overall, many people purchased the 64GB iPhone X.

We got hold of Nilesh Chawla who purchased the 256GB iPhone X and also received free Air Pods along with it. Nilesh specifically came and purchased it from the store since he didn’t trust online platforms. He also said that he wanted the experience of buying the iPhone X in person. He says that he had heard a lot about the iPhone X and was keen on experiencing the new technologies arriving with it. He has upgraded to the iPhone X from the iPhone 7 Plus.

Deepanshu who purchased the 64GB iPhone X has been an Apple fan boy for long having used four iPhones in the past already. He is quite excited for the edge-to-edge display and Face ID feature on the iPhone X. He confidently says that the iPhone’s technology is the best which made him skip the iPhone 8 and buy the special edition iPhone X.

Simultaneously in Mumbai, we were at the Aptronix store, in High Street Phoenix mall, Lower Parel, where Apple fanboys had cued up. From what BGR India gathered from the authorities, the store received roughly around 140-150 pre-orders for the iPhone X, which, when compared to iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus launched last month is quite high. When asked about the total number of units they have received, the store manager declined to comment and said that ‘there are enough devices”. This proved that the demand for iPhone X is surely high in India.

We spoke to Irfan who was the first person to buy the iPhone X 64GB. He is presently using the iPhone 7 Plus and iPhone 6s. Citing reasons for purchasing the iPhone X, Irfan said, “Because of all the new changes they have made. From the design to the addition of Face ID, the new technology attracted to buy the smartphone.”

Anjana was one of the few to grab the iPhone X 256GB model and it is a major upgrade as she currently uses an iPhone 6s. She is also another big Apple fan girl as she says, “Have been an Apple fan throughout. No one in my family is using Android. Have been using Apple since the first smartphone. Have been upgrading all Apple products including iPad and MacBook line-up.”

We also happened to come across an Android user who upgraded from the OnePlus 3T to the iPhone X 64GB. Aisha says that she wanted to “try out iOS interface” but she will “still remain an Android fan”. Earlier today reports suggested that that due to short supply of the iPhone X, the Indian users will be left disappointed, but today the scenario looked otherwise.

Apple iPhones are known for a lot of things like Siri and Touch ID, but battery is not one of them. In fact, battery is one reason many distance themselves from the iPhones. But, when you think of an iPhone priced over a lakh, your expectations are naturally as high as the price. So hoping for a better battery on the iPhone X is but natural. And from what it seems, Apple took care of that.

In a recently shared teardown video on YouTube, it has been revealed that the iPhone X is fuelled by dual-batteries. From what we assume, Apple must have decided to split the capacity between two packs in order to fit other components around two small batteries instead of one larger or thicker one. Do note, existence of two batteries is no proof to a better battery life. We do hope that’s the case though.

Further, the overall structure of the iPhone X is similar to how iPhones were built in the past – the display is removed from the top and hinges at the bottom. The iPhone X’s display is connected to the board on its right side, so when taken off, it flips open to the right.

Digging deeper we see a very small motherboard being taken out of the device. See the video for yourself below. It is mostly silent, with Summertime Sadnessplaying in the background, so you just have to watch. Also while the video is interesting, the camera guy seems to have a hard time maintaining focus.

Further, since we see a dual-battery setup in this video, it is fair to mention the recent review reports that rated iPhone X’s battery performance quite positively. According to BuzzFeed News, “Battery life on the iPhone X is decent, but not stellar.” Folks at the publication tested the device for a week. Day 1, the battery dropped down to nine percent at late afternoon after mixed use of apps, including use of Waze to drive home and installing apps.

Surprisingly, on day 2, the reviewer started using the device at 98 percent in the morning, and that day included usage like recording a 4K video, listening to Podcast through the speakers, and an hour-long call. Despite this, the battery dropped only to 17 percent around 10 in the night. With 100 percent battery level in the morning and use of apps such as Lyft, Google Docs, Twitter, and Facebook, while on Wi-Fi, there still remained 27 percent battery at around midnight. In addition to BuzzFeed News, another review by TechCrunch also concludes that the battery lasts all day.

While these are still reports, we have the device in the BGR India office and we are working on the review. Watch this space closely to get a detailed review of the device, including how well the battery of the iPhone X 

Have you ever added one, two and three using a calculator? Clearly, that makes you poor at math by the snooty standards, but you can feel at home here. I too have once (or more) probably. Now, the question is if you have ever done that “major calculation” on an iOS 11 calculator. If you have, then I would seriously suggest you to go back to that math problem, because your results were quite likely wrong. But don’t be hard on yourself, blame it on iOS 11.

Turns out, the calculator app on the new iPhone OS is a wee bit flawed. A Reddituser has recently pointed out that, when you quickly type 1+2+3 on the iOS 11 calculator app, you most likely wouldn’t get six as the answer. You might get 23, or 24, or 16, or 32, or something else, depending on what buttons you tap and in what order, and, obviously, none of which is the right answer.

via GIPHY

Basically what happens here, is that when you type these numbers too fast, the app hangs a little, so instead of 1+2+3, you actually end up typing 1+23 or 12+3. Basically, you just get some or the other wrong answer. And it works similarly for other numbers too, so it is not like just the 1,2 and 3 are flawed. I tried adding 7+8+9 and got 89.

The Reddit user found that this issue was because of the new animation in the calculator app, where a button briefly fades to white when you press it. The result is that if you press an operator button (i.e., the plus sign) before the short animation finishes, the app ignores it. 

But you should know that this flaw occurs, only if you type really fast. If you type at a nice leisure pace, you are likely to get the correct results. Now, it doesn’t seem to be a deliberately done design that slows down the speed of the calculator, but you can never tell with Apple, and its “it is meant to work that way” justifications.

{BGR}

The man left the world six years ago, but his impression on it has only gotten deeper. Apparently, a Bayemway Steve Jobs once owned is being put up for auction next month on Sotheby’s, and the estimated winning bid on it is stunning, it is estimated to reach between $300,000 and $400,000. Originally, the BMW Z8 cost $128,000 when its production stopped in 2003. The auction is scheduled to begin on December 6 at Sotheby’s “Icons” event, featuring supercars from Lamborghini, Ferrari, Jaguar, and other marques.

According to the listing, Jobs’ ownership of this car is documented through several service invoices accompanying the car, as well as a copy of a California registration or so-called “pink slip” in his name and at his personal residence, a MacRumor report states. “According to legend, Jobs was convinced to buy the Z8 by Larry Ellison the iconoclastic CEO of Oracle, who enthused to Jobs that the car was a paragon of modern automotive engineering and ergonomics,” the listing says.

The BMW Z8 has a production date of April 1, 2000, and it was delivered to him in October of that year, according to Sotheby’s. Jobs reportedly sold the car in 2003 to its current owner in Los Angeles. Reportedly, since it was originally purchased by Jobs, the car has till now been driven just 15,200 miles, averaging less than 1,000 miles a year, the listing states. It is said to remain in “exemplary condition.” 

The silver-over-black car is equipped with several accessories, including its original BMW-branded Motorola flip phone that Jobs supposedly hated. The JOBS Z8 license plate was registered by the current owner. 

Recently, a Newsweek magazine from 1988 signed by Steve Jobs was sold for $50,587, as reported by CNet. Quite against the traditional signatures, Jobs signed the magazine writing, “I love manufacturing”, with love underlined for stress. This was the issue covering rhe unveiling of Jobs’ NeXT computer.