Truly Exquisite puts Gold-plated iPad Pro 9.7 on pre-order

Truly Exquisite likes to jump the gun on creating lavish versions of smartphones and tablets. Earlier it announced gold-plated Galaxy S7 and S7 edge phones before they even went on pre-order.

Now, it's jumping ship over to the competition by plating the new iPad Pro 9.7 with noble metals.

£1,850 (without VAT) starts you off with 24K Gold Plated tablet, £1,900 gets you 18K Rose Gold instead. The top version is the £1,950, plated with Platinum. You can have the front in Black or White.

This is for the 128GB Wi-Fi versions, you can upgrade to 256GB or mobile data connectivity if you like (but it costs extra, of course).

iPad Pro: 24K Gold • 18K Rose Gold • Platinum

The gilded iPad Pro 9.7s will be available 2-3 weeks after Apple starts selling the plain aluminum ones. Truly Exquisite will package the tablet in a luxury wooden box and throw in a Smart Keyboard - after splurging so much cash, you better get back to work!

By the way, Truly Exquisite clued us in that they are working on a special Limited Edition iPad Pro that is somehow even more exclusive than the trio above (we don't know the details, though).

Google working on Periscope competitor called YouTube Connect

Google is working on a competitor to Twitter's popular video streaming app, Periscope, and also the new Facebook Live that recently came out.

Called YouTube Connect, the service would pretty much be like Periscope, according to sources at VentureBeat. The app will be available on Android and iOS. You will be able to log in with your Google or YouTube account and then stream the event, which will be visible in the app and also on your channel, if you have one. You can choose to save the stream after you're done so people can watch it later if they missed the live stream. There will also be chat and tagging features and you can also see what others are live streaming on your news feed.

YouTube currently does have a live streaming feature but it would seem too daunting to some people, who would prefer the simplicity of something like Periscope or Facebook Live. The new YouTube Connect will attempt to appeal to the younger crowd but with YouTube still part of the name, it remains to be seen if people will take to it. Besides, Google just isn't as cool as Twitter or even Facebook.

Android 6.0 based MIUI China stable ROM available for Mi 3/Mi 4

Xiaomi has released Android 6.0 Marshmallow MIUI ROM for the Mi 3 and Mi 4 smartphones.

V7.2.8.0.MXDCNDB is currently only available for the Chinese region, which means you can install it on any Mi 3 and Mi 4 but being the Chinese ROM you won't get any of the Google apps pre-installed. For that you will have to wait for the global ROM to release.

The ROM is stable so should be fit for daily use. However, as mentioned before, unless you can live without the Google apps or know your way around installing them separately, it's better to wait for the global ROM to release.

Sprint LG G5 pre-orders go live March 24 with launch aimed at April 1

Sprint has announced it is offering the LG G5 for pre-order on March 24. The US carrier is also offering three different options to purchase the new modular smartphone. You can buy the phone for $0 down (for well-qualified buyers) plus tax and 24 monthly payments of $24.

You can also purchase the device on a new 2-year contract for $150 after $50 American Express gift-card mail-in rebate. And, of course, you can purchase the LG G5 for its full retail price of $576.

If you trade in a phone upon purchasing the device, you can get a free accessory bundle worth $80 which includes: one extra battery (which you’ll probably need), the charging cradle for the battery, and a USB Type-C to Micro-USB adapter.

Sprint says customers can trade in any working smartphone and instantly get a $150 credit towards their new LG G5 in addition to the complimentary battery bundle. The only way you can get this discount is if you sign up for the 24-monthly installment plan.

Report says Apple will make Apple Pay available for mobile sites before the holiday season

Apple has reportedly been telling potential partners that it will allow users to pay on mobile websites just as easy as scanning their fingerprint. The feature would only work on Apple’s Safari mobile browser as it is integrated into the OS.

There was also some talk of possibly bringing Apple Pay to desktop websites. Perhaps actually building a TouchID sensor into a Mac would make the feature work perfectly. However, we don’t know when/if that will (ever) actually happen.

If Apple does decide to launch such a feature, it’d likely be launched during Apple’s annual World Wide Developers Conference (WWDC). Apple reportedly plans to bring the feature before the biggest shopping season of the year.

PayPal needs to watch its back because it is among the biggest online secure payment services in the world and Apple Pay poses a big threat to PayPal’s transaction volumes.

Paypal has been promoting its new “Old Money V.S. New Money” ad. I absolutely love this commercial because it addresses the United States’ outdated bank and money system and put attention on “New Money” being more convenient and letting users taking control of their own money.

BMW integrates Android apps into 2016 7 Series iDrive

BMW has announced at the New York International Auto Show a new app integration for Android versions of Spotify, iHeartRadio, and Pandora into the 7 2016 7 Series’ iDrive. The company has only announced integration with the one line of cars and for only those three apps, but this should open doors for more models to gain such integration.

The integration has to start somewhere, and even though it’s only with these three apps, they are among the most popular music apps and they allow drivers to operate such apps with minimal distractions.

BMW was the first car makers to seamlessly integrate the iPod connector into the glove box and among the first to integrate iPhone connectivity into its smart iDrive entertainment system. We hope to see more and more car makers integrating to promote safer driving.

Google Now makes weather card available as a shortcut on your home screen

Google has made a couple of tweaks lately, including the improvement of Google Now’s speech reply sounding more natural and the improvement of Google Now on Tap.

Google would like you to use its app more and more to incorporate it into your daily life with contextual information such as traffic conditions, public transit notifications, and something that Google Now has already been doing which is notifying you of a drastic change in the weather forecast for the next day.

Today, Google started rolling out another feature which can be activated by simply making a Google search for “weather [insert location here]”. Upon searching for such a query, the Google app will ask you if you would like to add a short cut for the weather on your home screen.

I love Google’s new weather interface and I’m glad they decided to make it easier to access. Who thinks Google should add more shortcuts to Google Now cards from the home screen?

Meizu m3 note will be unveiled on April 6

The Huawei P9 line isn't the only big smartphone launch from a Chinese company happening on April 6. For whatever reason, Meizu has picked the exact same date to unveil the upcoming m3 note, the successor to the m2 note from last year. Perhaps Meizu wants to steal some of Huawei's thunder or something.

Spec and pricing details for the m3 note have just been leaked mere hours ago. The phone is apparently going to come with a 5.5-inch 1080p touchscreen, 2GB of RAM, and the MediaTek Helio P10 chipset powering it. That one has a 2 GHz octa-core Cortex-A53 CPU and the Mali-T860MP2 GPU. The Meizu m3 note will be kept running by a 3,200 mAh battery.

It will be priced at CNY 799 ($122, €109) with 16GB of built-in storage, and CNY 999 ($153, €137) with double that amount of space. Other details aren't known at this point, but it looks like the major upgrade here compared to the m2 note could be the SoC. The battery got a slight bump too.

LG 360 VR headset is now priced in the US too

So far two of LG's Friends for the G5 have been priced in the US - the Cam Plus module will go for $70 and the 360 Cam will cost $200. And now a third member of the Korean company's accessory family has its pricing info revealed as well.

We're talking about the 360 VR headset, which we already knew would cost £199 in the UK. Across the big pond, however, that will be $199.99. Oh, and you can pre-order one if you want to, the retailer you need to head to is B&H, which also has the 360 Cam up for grabs.

Unfortunately it doesn't list a shipping date for the VR headset, so it's unclear when it will arrive at your doorstep should you pre-order. The G5 itself is going to be out on April 1.

The 360 VR connects to the G5 through USB Type-C. It has two 1.88-inch 960x720 displays, and it can show you Google Cardboard content as well as 360-degree videos from YouTube and stuff you record yourself with the 360 Cam.

Latest HTC 10 teaser is all about audio capabilities

After finally announcing when it will make the HTC 10 official yesterday, today HTC is continuing its teaser campaign for the upcoming device on Twitter.

The latest teaser image, which you can see below in all its glory, is all about the audio capabilities of the HTC 10. Many have been worried about that area of the phone not being able to match its predecessors, since the front-facing stereo BoomSound speakers have seemingly been removed (as portrayed in the numerous leaked renders of the handset).

HTC wants everybody to calm down, however. Apparently the "new boom" brought with it by the HTC 10 will be easy to hear. And, we assume, should impress, otherwise why tease?

The image seems to show two different speaker grilles, though we haven't seen either of those in any of the leaked renders of the HTC 10. So it's unclear what's going on here. Maybe the renders aren't of the final product, or perhaps the grilles weren't obvious in the leaked imagery because what we see here are extreme close-ups of their designs. Either way, all will be revealed on April 12.

The HTC 10 should sport a 5.1-inch QHD Super LCD 5 touchscreen, Qualcomm's Snapdragon 820 chipset, 4GB of RAM, 32GB of expandable storage, a 3,000 mAh battery, and a "very compelling" camera. It will run Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow.

Meizu lineup for 2016 leaked, Pro 6 to come with Exynos 8890 chip and QHD display

The Meizu Pro 6 has been a regular in our news section, regardless of the fact that it's still nowhere near official status. A whole bunch of other Meizu smartphones are to be expected this year though, detailed in a leaked document - complete with specs and pricing.

Bottom to top, the lineup starts with the Meizu m3, featuring a 5-inch 720p LCD screen, 2,800mAh battery, and unknown chipset. Prices are listed at CNY 599 ($92) for the 16GB version and CNY 200 on top for twice the storage.

Meizu m1 metal

The Meizu m3 note ups display diagonal to 5.5 inches, resolution to FullHD, and battery capacity to 3,200mAh. This one is said to be powered by the Mediatek Helio P10 chipset. Prices are CNY 799/999 ($123/$154) for the 16GB and 32GB versions, respectively. Then it's the Meizu m2 metal (or metal 2), which gets the more powerful Mediatek Helio X20 chip and mTouch 3.0 fingerprint sensor, and that comes at a CNY 200 premium over the m3 note.

Which brings us to the first of the minis, the MX6 mini. 4.7-inch FullHD Super AMOLED display and Helio X20, mTouch 3.0, and 2,800mAh battery, all for CNY 1,499 ($230) for the 16GB base storage. The proper MX6 has very much the same specs, save for the 5.5-inch diagonal and 3,300mAh battery. Prices start at CNY 1,799 ($277).

Flagship mini enthusiasts will drool over the Pro 6 mini, though. This one is powered by the slightly modified Helio X25, which has its Cortex-A72 cores clocked higher than in the X20. The Pro 6 mini also gets an updated fingerprint reader (mTouch 3.1) and 30-watt fast charging. Base storage is 32GB, and the price tag is CNY 2299 ($355).

Meizu Pro 5

The Meizu Pro 6 also stars in the leaked document. Sitting atop the lineup, it gets some exclusive features - its 5.7-inch display has QHD resolution, storage is UFS3.0, while all the rest have eMMC5.1 chips, and battery capacity is the largest at 3,500mAh. It's also said to be powered by Samsung's Exynos 8890 chipset, while at the joint Mediatek/Meizu event for the Helio X25 announcement it was stated that the Pro 6 will come with this precise SoC.

The above table is a nice and clear representation of what to expect from Meizu in 2016. While it certainly looks logical and believable, you'd be best-advised to take it with a reasonable dose of skepticism.

Samsung Galaxy S7 active on the way, import listing reveals

Ever since its MWC announcement, the Samsung Galaxy S7 has been turning heads throughout the mobile industry. Now that you can actually buy one on most markets, excitement seems to be at an all time high. But despite all the positive feedback and attention, the Korean giant can't really afford to take a break in today's competitive market and by the looks of it work is continuing at full steam.

A rather interesting shipping report was picked up by Evan Blass, better known as @evleaks. It suggests that Samsung is already well under way with the development of a third member of the S7 family - the S7 active. The information in question comes from Zauba and is in no way conclusive of anything, besides the fact that a new Samsung handset is in testing.

The really interesting part is its model number - SM-G891A. Considering that the Galaxy S6 active bears the model number SM-G890A, you can see where the assumption stems from. If we look back at the S6 active, it was actually a pretty big deal for many Samsung users, who found it a better option function-wise, despite the rougher exterior. It offered buyers MIL-STD-810G and IP68 protection from elements and a considerably bigger battery.

Now that the S7 and S7 edge both have waterproofing and expandable memory out of the box, it will be interesting to see what S7 active brings to the table besides added shock protection and whether it will once again constitute a big upgrade over its siblings.