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ASUS' ZenFone 6 has a flippable camera and giant battery
It's no secret that ASUS had been struggling in the smartphone world, but following the resignation of its previous CEO, the company has since shifted its focus from the masses to power users, with last year's ROG Phone already hinting at a new direction. That said, ASUS also needs to offer something that's less niche but still stands out from the crowd. This is where the new ZenFone 6 comes in: It's a flagship all-screen device with a flipping camera. It's an implementation once used by the likes of Oppo and Huawei years ago, and more recently, Samsung.
How Android Q supports 5G apps and why you should care
When Francesco Grilli and his peers were working on the 4G standard, they had a few ideas as to what the popular use cases might be. Video calls over the internet, perhaps, or rich messaging content, they thought. "In the end, none of that really happened on a larger scale," Grilli said. "Other stuff we were thinking about didn't materialize." As vice president of product management at Qualcomm Technologies, Grilli's job largely revolves around imagining how people would use advanced networks.
Android Q will offer photo apps access to added depth effects
The first Android Q beta has arrived. And based on the features Google listed on Android Developers Blog, it could herald the arrival of more photography apps with depth effects like iPhone's portrait mode. The upcoming mobile platform allows applications to request a "Dynamic Depth" image consisting of a JPEG and various depth-related elements in the same file. That will allow developers to offer a variety of blur and bokeh styles and options in-app.
The Android Q beta is here with a focus on privacy
It's that time of year when Google offers an early peek at the next version of Android, and sure enough, the first Android Q preview beta is here. Like previous Android betas, the emphasis here is more on functional updates rather than razzle-dazzle. Most notably, privacy is a major focus. You can limit location gathering to when an app is running (much like on iOS) and restrict apps' access to media, while Google will restrict apps' power to either jump to the foreground or collect sensitive info like IMEI and serial numbers.
Android Q might include an equivalent to Apple's Face ID
To date, Android phone makers who've wanted to include face recognition have had to craft their own secure solutions or else use basic face detection that you can fool with a photo. Soon, however, it might be relatively commonplace. Sleuthers at XDA and 9to5Google have discovered code in an early Android Q version that hints at native support for hardware face recognition. It wouldn't just be used for signing into your phone, either, as it could also authorize purchases and sign into apps. It would largely be a parallel to the Face ID system found in Apple's more recent iPhones, just with more flexibility.
Google's next I/O conference begins May 7th
If you're a fan of all things Google, you already have a date to mark on your calendar for 2019. Developer Till Kottmann has 'cheated' Google's I/O conference puzzle to reveal that this year's event will take place between May 7th and May 9th at the familiar Shoreline Amphitheater in Mountain View. We've since confirmed the timing with Google. While the news is likely coming sooner than Google anticipated, you might want to try solving the puzzle yourself if you're a coder -- Google is promising free tickets to those who decipher the clues as intended.
Android Q may include a dark theme and desktop mode
Many Android users still don't have Pie yet, but details are already emerging for its follow-up. XDA says it has obtained a very early build of Android Q (Quiche? Queso?) that hints at Google's plans. For one, there's a system-wide dark theme. This might be particularly helpful if you're trying to save power on an OLED-equipped phone or just don't want to blind yourself at night. There's a developer option to force the dark mode on apps that don't support it, hinting that it may take a while before every app honors the feature.
