Expect new Apple Watch to look similar to the first one, analyst says

If you’ve been holding off on purchasing an Apple Watch because you are waiting for the second-generation model, you might be (or might not be) surprised to learn that the new Apple Watch will probably look much like the original one. Apple might be taking a similar approach to the iPhone when it comes to launching a successor meaning we might see something along the lines of ‘Apple Watch S’

Ming-Chi Kuo quoted an investors meeting held earlier today where he states that he expects to see “spec improvements with limited changes to form factor design”. This is nothing new to Apple as they have taken this same approach with the iPhone, literally every other year since the iPhone 3GS.

According to Kuo, we could likely see a refreshed Apple Watch launch along with one or two new iPhone models in September. Kuo addresses possible changes to the Watch could be ,battery life, possible addition of a camera, and less reliance of the watch from the phone (though that last one could be done with software updates).

Kuo also estimates that Apple Watch sales will drop 25% this year when compared to last year’s estimated 10.6 million units sold.

LG Hi-Fi Plus with B&O Play DAC module for the G5 won't be sold in the US, Canada, or Korea

You may know that LG's been making a big fuss about how its G5 is the first 'modular smartphone'. And you probably also know that alongside the G5 itself the company unveiled some accessories or standalone gadgets it's calling Friends of the G5. That said, only two of those actually have anything to do with the supposed revolutionary 'modular' system - theCam Plus camera grip that also comes with an extended battery, and the LG Hi-Fi Plus with B&O Play DAC, which should give you better quality audio than the phone itself can.

Well, in a move that makes little sense, it seems that LG has decided not to sell the B&O Hi-Fi DAC in the US, Canada, or Korea. All mentions of the accessory have been removed from the company's websites for these countries, and it doesn't appear on the LG Friends pages either. It's like it never existed in those regions at all.

Apparently the packaging for the module also confirms that it won't be available in North America or Korea, but it's unclear why. It is however still available internationally. One thing is certain, though - it's pretty rich to call a smartphone 'modular' if there's only one additional plug-in module you're offering for it.

Hopefully this is more of a delay and not a situation where the accessory won't ever be offered in the aforementioned places, but if that's the case then removing it from its websites altogether seems like quite an overreaction on LG's part.

Amazon Kindle Oasis leaks ahead of unveiling this week

Amazon will unveil a new Kindle e-reader this week. That much is certain, since the info has been revealed by none other than Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos himself. And in case you've been wondering what the new model will bring to the table, well, you don't have to wait for the official event to find any of that stuff out. That's because a product listing from China, which went up too early, tells us a lot about the device.

First off, it will be called Kindle Oasis. Next up, as you can see, its design will be pretty unique. It will be 3.4mm at its thinnest point and 8.5mm at its thickest. It weighs just 131g, thus being 20% lighter than past models.

It has a 300ppi screen, which comes with 60% more LEDs for more uniform backlighting. The screen density matches that of the Kindle Voyage. It comes with big page turning buttons on one side, presumably for better one-handed operation. You'll be able to use the Oasis with those buttons on the left or on the right, since the screen will rotate to accommodate your choice.

The Oasis will ship with a leather battery case. Once it's connected to that (through 12 magnets), the standby battery life will be a whopping 20 months. The battery case will be offered in three color versions: black, brown, and red.

Pricing information hasn't been leaked unfortunately, so there's still no telling where the Oasis will fit in Amazon's ever-expanding Kindle portfolio.

LG G5 latest promo video focuses on the 360 Cam

The LG 360 Cam is one of the more interesting "Friends" accessories that the company launched alongside the G5. LG's latest promo video shows how much effort has been poured into making the 360 Cam easy to use.

Not that we didn't already know that, but the little green cat mascot is just too adorable to miss.

The LG 360 Cam costs $200 and as we found out during our MWC 2016 hands-on, it supports up to 2K video, and the content can be viewed on any Cardboard and YouTube 360 compatible device. It has a 1,200mAh battery for up to 70 minutes of video recording.

As you can see in the video, you can also control the 360 Cam from the G5 with ease.

Sony rumored to announce Pink Xperia Z5 Premium tomorrow

Three months after the pink Sony Xperia Z5 went official, there are rumors that the Japanese company will also announce a pink version of the Xperia Z5 Premium smartphone.

Sony Xperia Z5 in pink

As for when the pink Xperia Z5 Premium will be unveiled, rumors say it is expected to happen on April 12, i.e, tomorrow. Sadly, there is currently no information on exactly which regions will get the new color, although reports say Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Mainland China are on the list.

Samsung Gear S2 Band Adapter now available for purchase

The Gear S2 Band Adapter - which makes it possible for users of the Samsung smartwatch to swap their current rubber wristband with any standard watch band - has been officially launched.

The adapter, which leaked online last month, is now available for purchase in Europe. Specifically, the device is currently being sold in Germany, where telefon.de has it in stock. Carrying a €25.7 price tag, the Band Adapter is available in white and dark gray color options.

The device is expected to hit other European markets as well as North America soon, although the exact date isn't yet known.

Corning introduces MASTERPIX service for printing on Gorilla Glass

Corning has introduced its MASTERPIX service in India. Through this service, customers can get their photos printed on a sheet of Corning Gorilla Glass

The process involves printing the image on a thin sheet of Gorilla Glass using UV-cured inks. Corning claims the prints are scratch-resistant, stain-resistant, easy to clean and of long lasting archival quality.

Customers can get their prints in six different sizes, from 4-inch by 6-inch all the way to 55-inch by 48-inch, and in glossy or matte finish. Apart from photographs, MASTERPIX can also be used to make business cards.

No word yet on pricing.

Update: The pricing starts at INR 629 and goes up to INR 51,099 for glossy finish. And for matte finish it starts at INR 819 and goes up to INR 73,999.

Meizu Pro 6 fast charging gets a teaser prior to announcement

Meizu has officially revealed a nice Pro 6 detail in the phone's latest teaser. The Pro 6 will sport fast charging, which is either MediaTek's latest Pump Express Plus found on the Helio X25 chipset or Quick Charge 2.0 that's on the Samsung Exynos 8890 chip.

The Meizu Pro 6 fast charging teaser image

The rumor mill has been generous for the Meizu Pro 6 and the latest crop indicates the phone could sport a 10-LED flash placed below the 21 MP rear camera. RAM is rumored to be either 4GB or 6GB, while internal storage will be available as 128GB option.

The display of the Pro 6 is also from Samsung - a 5.7" QHD Super AMOLED panel. Finally, the company also revealed the back of the phone in a recent teaser.

We'll know for sure what the Meizu Pro 6 has to offer in just a couple of days on Arpil 13.

More HTC 10 images leak ahead of April 12 unveiling

A couple of more images of HTC's upcoming 10 smartphone - which has already been the subject of several leaks and rumors until now - have leaked online, showing the front as well as back of the black-colored variant.

The design, as revealed by this new set of leaked images, is broadly in-line with what we'vealready seen - a front facing camera as well as a physical home button (that's said to include a fingerprint sensor) and no HTC logo on the front; plus a round camera lens (next to LED flash and the laser focus) and a company logo between antenna lines on the back.

As for the specs, rumors say the handset is powered by Snapdragon 820, and sports a 5.2-inch QHD display. It has 4GB RAM and 32 as well as 64GB storage options.

The device has a 12MP UltraPixel rear camera (equipped with OIS and laser autofocus) and 5MP front shooter. The HTC 10 packs in a 3,000mAh battery, and also features a USB-C port for charging.

The phone is set to be unveiled online at 8AM EST tomorrow, April 12.

Sprint won't be carrying BlackBerry Priv after all

Back in January, at this year's Consumer Electronics Show (CES), BlackBerry CEO confirmed that the Priv - which was an AT&T exclusive in the US at that time - will eventually be available from other major carries, including Verizon, T-Mobile, and Sprint.

While T-Mobile started selling the device in January itself, it landed on Verizon earlier last month. Sprint customers, on the other hand, have been waiting for the handset all this while. However, sadly, now it looks like the carrier has had a change of heart, with its customer care informing Priv hopefuls that Sprint won't be selling the Android device, at-least for now.

Although it isn't yet clear why Sprint has now decided against carrying the Priv, the revelation does come at a time when BlackBerry finally admitted that the phone's price tag (near-$700) was too high for customers. The Canadian company also revealed that it sold a total of 600,000 phones in its fiscal fourth quarter, which was way below the 850,000 figure forecasted by analysts.

Huawei Watch launched in India for $346

Huawei has finally launched the Huawei Watch in India. The Watch will be available on Flipkart starting today at 14:00 IST for INR 22,999, which is about $346. This is the base model that comes with a stainless steel body and leather strap, and otherwise retails for $349 in the US.

The Huawei Watch has a 1.4-inch fully circular AMOLED display with 286 PPI pixel density with sapphire crystal cover, 1.2GHz Snapdragon 400 processor, 4GB internal storage, 512MB RAM, heart rate monitor, Wi-Fi, microphone and speaker, IP67 water resistance, and a 300mAh battery.

LG Watch Urbane drops down to $150

If you recall, back in January this year, the original LG Watch Urbane received a price cut in the US, and was being sold for $200. In case you missed out on that deal on eBay, and are still interested in purchasing the timepiece, you'll be glad to know that the device's price tag has been slashed further.

It's now going for just $150 on the online auction site. That's a solid price cut given the smartwatch's initial launch price of $349. While the deal was available on both gold and silver variants, the latter is currently being shown as out of stock. Shipping is free anywhere in the United States.

For those who aren't in the know, the Watch Urbane was launched in October 2015. It's is compatible with both iOS and Android.

Source (eBay)