Heena Sharma Blog

  Google Pixel 5 and 4a 5G users can no longer use their ultra-wide cameras to take pictures of the stars. The company apparently removed the lens's astrophotography capabilities with the Google Camera 8.1 update. According to The Verge, the feature was a selling point of the Pixel 4 and was available on the regular and telephoto cameras. When the 4a 5G and 5 were announced with new wide-angle lenses, the feature was added to those as well. Now it's been taken away. On Pixel 4a (5G) and Pixel 5, astrophotography only works on zoom settings equal to or greater than 1x. The astrophotography feature lets users capture the night sky by pointing their phone up and keeping it still, either by balancing it on a nearby object or putting it on a tripod. The feature is still available on the phones' other cameras, but if you go to Night Sight mode and switch to the ultra-wide-angle camera a user will now get a warning saying "Zoom to 1x for astrophotography." Read ...

  As a successor to the Pixel 5 , Google is likely to launch its Pixel 6 smartphone next year and now a new patent has claimed that the device will feature an under-screen selfie snapper. The patent doesn't go into any detail as to how that's achieved but, presumably the camera would be underneath the screen, reports Techradar. ZTE has already released a smartphone with an under-display front shooter and Xiaomi and OPPO have exhibited their prototypes. The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3, which will likely arrive in the second half of 2021, is also expected to feature the tech. The patent has revealed other details about the phone, including its basic design and the location of the main camera. The patent shows the primary camera module's design and location will remain unchanged from what was seen on the Pixel 5. As such, the patent suggests the camera module will include two sensors and an LED flash. Read More

  Google has started rolling out the latest 8.1 version of its Camera app with some of the functionality from the new Pixel 5 to older Pixel phones. For the past months, the owners of Pixel 5 had essentially exclusive access to the latest redesign of the Google Camera app, as version 8.0 of the app only rolled out to Pixel 5, reports 9To5Google. In the updated version, several features of Google Camera app from the bottom bar are re-organised and features like Audio Zoom , which reduces the background noise, is added along with other zoom shortcuts. The Cinematic Pan video recording feature, an image stabilisation feature for smooth panning shots, has also been added. The report suggests that the Cinematic Pan feature has only been spotted on Pixel 4XL and Pixel 4 so far. The company might limit the feature to just the older generation of its flagship product. Read More

  American technology giant Google’s Pixel 4a smartphone and Nest Audio smart speaker are coming to India on October 16. Both the devices will be available on Flipkart as Big Billion Days sale specials. Priced at Rs 31,999, the Pixel 4a will be available at an introductory price of Rs 29,999. The Nest Audio smart speaker will be available at special launch price of Rs 6,999 (MRP Rs 7,999). While the Pixel 4a is a Flipkart-exclusive, the Nest Audio will also be available soon at Reliance Retail and Tata Cliq store. Google Pixel 4a: Specifications and features The Google Pixel 4a sports a 5.81-inch OLED screen of fullHD+ resolution, stretched in a 19.5:9 aspect ratio. The screen has circular cut-out area on the top left side, accommodating its front camera. The display supports HDR and boasts Always-on feature. Powering the smartphone is Qualcomm Snapdragon 730G system-on-chip, paired with 6GB RAM and 128GB internal storage. The phone ships with Android 10 operating system, and ...

  Google will try to make a bigger splash in the smartphone market with a cheaper high-end model while it also aims to expand its presence on bigger screens with a new TV service. The products unveiled Wednesday focus on two areas where Google has struggled to make significant inroads. Google also used a half-hour showcase streamed online to introduce a $99 speaker that is says has better acoustics for playing music than the cheaper ones that it has been selling primarily as a command center for its voice-activated assistant. Google's latest smartphone represents the fifth generation of a device that was supposed to prove the Mountain View, California, company can make hardware as well as it does software after the brand made its 2016 debut. Read More

  Google is hosting an event tonight where the American technology giant is likely to launch Pixel smartphones , Chromecast dongle, and a Nest smart speaker. Named 'Launch Night In’, the event will start at 11:30 pm (IST) and it will livestream on YouTube and an event’s homepage here. Pixel 4a 5G and Pixel 5 Google announced the Pixel 4a 5G and Pixel 5 in August at the launch of Pixel 4a. The company, however, leave the specifications and features information of the two smartphones undisclosed for the launch event, which is likely to be the tonight’s event. The Pixel 4a 5G is expected to be similar to the Pixel 4a but with 5G network support. If similar to the Pixel 4a, the 5G model will sport a 5.81-inch OLED screen of fullHD+ resolution. The display will supports HDR and Always-on feature. The phone would feature advanced Google Assistant, which will let you send text messages and allow controlling apps through voice commands. It will also get Google Recorder app, which su...

  Google on Tuesday rolled out the much-anticipated Android 11 first on Pixel devices, that comes with features like location privacy for employees, Live View with Location Sharing in Google Maps and new Smart Reply on Pixels keyboard. Employees will now see separate tabs for work and personal when they share files, open content or go into their settings menu. "To give employees more information about their location privacy, we've added a new notification whenever their IT admin grants location access to work apps," Google said in a statement. Google Calendar will soon allow people to see personal events in their work calendar, helping to better schedule around commitments across their day. Read More .

  Google is expected to launch its Pixel 5 smartphone on September 30. Ahead the launch, a new report has surfaced, suggesting the phone will feature a 6-inch screen of 90Hz refresh rate and a punch-hole. The smartphone is also expected to have slimmer bezels compared to the Pixel 4a, but possibly the same footprint. The Pixel is expected to feature 8GB RAM and 128GB onboard storage. It is touted to be powered by the Snapdragon 765G system-on-chip (SoC), which is "hardly a surprise since the smartphone was previously spotted on a benchmark database with this chipset", reports Android Central. The presence of the SD765G inside the device reveals that it will debut as the first 5G-ready Pixel phone.The device will be the first Pixel phone to come with 8GB RAM. However, the AI Benchmark has no information on the other specs of the device. Read More

Lenovo-owned Chinese smartphone company Motorola on Friday announced that it has started rolling out the Android 9 Pie software over-the-air (OTA) update to its "One Power" smartphone, replacing Android Oreo. Android 9 Pie was officially released in August and was initially made available on Google Pixel and OnePlus 6 devices. Android 9 Pie update is bringing " Motorola One Power " users longer and improved battery life, an entirely new user interface (UI) with redesigned "Quick Settings" and a revamped split-screen option, the company said in a statement. The update comes with intuitive navigation, simplified volume controls, improved "Do Not Disturb" mode and an easier mechanism to manage notifications along with support for dual SIM dual VoLTE and better low-light imaging. Motorola's online-exclusive "One Power" smartphone was launched in September and released in October as the company's first Android...