The good news is that most of the premium Android phones these days offer some form of quick charging via their USB-C adapters. In the case of the latest iPhones, you can get fast charging, but only if you pay extra for both a 29-watt power adapter and a USB-C-to-Lightning cable (about $68 total). 

For our first round of testing, we wanted to find what battery percentage these phones could reach in 30 minutes of charging with their included adapters. The phones were on, but the screens were turned off. With the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone X, we used both the standard AC plug and the fast-charging gear to bring you both sets of results.

The OnePlus 5T led the pack, reaching an impressive 59 percent in 30 minutes. The advantage for the OnePlus? Unlike most other Android phones, it doesn't use Qualcomm's QuickCharge technology. Instead, it employs the proprietary Dash Charge, which delivers higher amperage than QuickCharge and uses dedicated circuitry in the charger itself for heat management. (Android Central has a great explainer on how Dash Charge works.)

However, it's important to note that these iPhones charge slower than the rest of the field even with their included adapters. For instance, the iPhone X hit only 17 percent after 30 minutes.

Among other phones, the Galaxy Note 8, S8 and S8+ were all in the same ballpark, at 35 to 38 percent, and the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL had comparable results.

So how about after an hour? The OnePlus 5T once again took the prize, reaching 93 percent in 60 minutes. The LG V30 snagged second place, at 86 percent, and the latest iPhones all vied for third place, though the iPhone X had the most capacity, at 81 percent. And, yes, you could argue that you need to cheat to hit these numbers with the iPhone, because you have to buy extra gear.
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Overall, if filling up your phone fast is a top priority, the OnePlus 5T is the champ. And at $499, it's also the most affordable phone you can get that comes with flagship-level specs and performance.

With the iPhone X, Apple has sorted those parameters about the iPhone as a product that smartphone buyers care for the most — a modern narrow-bezel-display, new biometric verifications and a pair of great cameras. With these out of the way, it seems that Apple will look forward to fixing one of the areas where iPhones have never made a name for themselves — battery life, in the next generation iPhones.
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Renowned Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo from KGI securities has mentioned in his latest report that the next generation of Apple flagships will be sporting bigger batteries than the current generation models. The 2018 iPhones are expected to use an improved version of the iPhone X’s L-shaped batteries with an improved efficiency of 10 per cent, which may not sound great initially but could help the Cupertino giant add an hour or two worth of battery life.

Relating it to his previous report of three iPhone models for 2018, the 5.8-inch and 6.5-inch OLED iPhones are only expected to benefit from the new stamina upgrade. The 6.1-inch LCD iPhone will probably stay contended with the older battery designs to keep the costs low.

Do note that these are still rumours but KGI’s reports are nearly accurate in predicting the future iPhones. There’s still a lot of time before the next generation iPhones break cover, so keep following this space for more.

With inputs from 9to5Mac

Apple Inc Chief Design Officer Jony Ive is returning to day-to-day management of the company’s design teams after handing off managerial duties two years ago to focus on other projects, Apple told Reuters on Friday.

Ive, who had led Apple’s design teams since 1996, was behind many of the company’s most iconic designs, from early iMacs that came in translucent jelly-bean colours to the first iPhone.

In 2015, Ive was named chief design officer, reporting directly to CEO Tim Cook. He then handed off some administrative duties to Apple design executives Alan Dye and Richard Howarth to focus on broader efforts like Apple’s retail stores and new “spaceship” campus in Cupertino, Apple Park.

Dye and Howarth will now report to Ive once again. “With the completion of Apple Park, Apple’s design leaders and teams are again reporting directly to Jony Ive, who remains focused purely on design,” Apple spokeswoman Amy Bessette told Reuters.
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Bloomberg reported the move earlier.

Apple is in talks to acquire Shazam Entertainment, whose software helps users identify songs by pointing their phone at an audio source, according to a person familiar with the situation.
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Shazam’s smartphone app is already tightly integrated with Apple’s Siri digital assistant. Users of Apple’s iPhone with the Shazam app installed can say: “Hey Siri, what’s that song?” and the app will identify it. But Shazam has other features, such as the ability to identify television shows that do not yet work with Siri.

Tech news website TechCrunch reported the talks earlier, writing that Apple could pay about $400 million for Shazam and that a deal could be signed as early as next week. Shazam did not respond to a request for comment.

Privately-held, UK-based Shazam has raised $143 million from DN Capital Limited, Institutional Venture Partners, and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, among others, over its 18-year history, according to PitchBook, a firm that tracks private venture investments. The price TechCrunch reported would fall far below Shazam’s most recent $1 billion valuations reported by PitchBook.

An acquisition of Shazam could help bolster Apple’s music efforts by making it easier for users to find songs and add them to playlists in its Apple Music service. As of mid-2017, Apple Music had 27 million subscribers, behind rival music streaming service Spotify’s 60 million users.

THE CHEAPER VERSION MAY NOT SEE DOWNGRADING OF FEATURES TO COMPENSATE FOR THE DROP IN THE PRICE.

Apple Inc is reported to be planning to launch its 9.7-inch iPad next year at a price point much lower than the current $329 (approximately Rs 21,200). This report seems to suggest that the price may be brought down to a more affordable $259 (approx. Rs 16,700).

Incidentally, this is already the cheapest available iPad in the market. If this report is proved to be true (there is no official confirmation of these details yet), then it might indicate a clear policy shift at the Cupertino based tach giant on its strategy to take on competition. The nearest rivals to the iPads are the tablets run on the Android OS and there is the unending desire to lure these customers to iOS. The Android tablets are definitely priced lower than the iPads. The fight on the pricing front is not new and has been going on due to Apple witnessing its sales of iPads drop year on year.

The repricing exercise may or may not see some downgrading of the features or specs on the iPad to take care of the drop in the price. These devices will be made by one of Apple’s vendors, Compal Electronics. The tentative timeframe being quoted now is around the middle of 2018.

There is also the ambiguity on the policy Apple will follow in respect of the current model being sold at the higher price. Will it also exist in parallel or will it be withdrawn? Questions like these are not yet answered and buyers, particularly in India who are waiting to see the iPad prices drop before making their purchase will have to wait till a clearer picture emerges directly from the company. Till such time, the above information may remain only as mere speculations. 

Apple Inc has succeeded in preventing Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi Inc from registering its “Mi Pad” tablet computer as an EU trademark because the name was too similar to Apple’s “iPad”.

The European Union’s second-highest court, the General Court, ruled that Mi Pad should not be registered as a trademark because consumers were likely to be confused by the similarity of the signs.

“The dissimilarity between the signs at issue, resulting from the presence of the additional letter ‘m’ at the beginning of ”Mi Pad“, is not sufficient to offset the high degree of visual and phonetic similarity between the two signs,” the Court said in a statement.

Xiaomi filed an application in 2014 with the EU Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) to register Mi Pad as an EU trademark.

Apple subsequently lodged a complaint that the EUIPO upheld in 2016 on the grounds that consumers would think Mi Pad was a variation on Apple’s iPad trademark.

The court agreed with the EUIPO’s decision and said English-speaking consumers were likely to understand the prefix “mi” as meaning “my” and therefore pronounce the “i” of Mi Pad and iPad in the same way.
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Xiaomi can appeal against the ruling at the EU’s highest court, the Court of Justice of the European Union.

SEES 2X USER GROWTH IN THE COUNTRY

The Indian market has been a major area of focus for Google, and the company has unveiled a new feature for Google Maps in the country. While earlier in the day, Google Maps (v9.67.1) for Android was spotted with a Two-wheeler mode, Google announced the feature at its Google for India event. The new mode is seen placed alongside the earlier alternatives – Car, Foot, and Train. We're seeing the new mode on the latest version of the Android app.

The new Two-wheeler mode in Google Maps features customised routing and voice-guided navigation, apart from enhanced landmark navigation. It has has been incorporated to help bikers in the country find the route most suitable for their vehicles.

Launching such a product in India makes sense as a substantial chunk of the country’s workforce travels on motorbikes and there are quite a few routes that are not wide enough for a bigger vehicle to fit in.

It's evident Google has a big focus on India. Google CEO Sundar Pichai's recently commented about India playing an important role in improving Google Maps and other Google products. At the Google for India event, Google also revealed that Maps has seen a 2x user growth in India in the past year.

The mode is fairly intuitive, and informs bikers about all possible road closures along the way. It also gives information about the parking situation at their destination, a handy feature that was previously seen in the car mode.

Last year, the European Commission ruled that Apple's sweetheart tax deal with Ireland was illegal and that the company owed around $14.5 billion in back taxes. But Ireland was rather slow to start collecting that cash, which led the Commission to refer the Irish government to the European Court of Justice in October due to Ireland's non-compliance with the 2016 ruling. However, the Wall Street Journal reports today that the country will finally start collecting those billions of dollars owed by Apple and it may start doing so early next year.

Both Apple and Ireland have fought back against the ruling -- Ireland has said that the European Union overstepped its authority and got some of the country's laws wrong while Apple has maintained that the amount it's being told to repay was miscalculated. Both are continuing to appeal the decision and the money will sit in an escrow fund while they do so. Ireland has said that negotiating the terms of that fund is what has held up its collection of the money but the European Commission said that the action it has taken against Ireland for failing to follow the 2016 ruling will proceed until the money is collected in full.

Paschal Donohoe, Ireland's finance minister, said that Apple is expected to begin funneling money into the fund during the first quarter of 2018. We may get more information on the fund, its management and the timing of Apple's payments during the company's next earnings report in January.

WhatsApp is testing a new 'Restricted Groups' feature which will give the group administrator more powers.

WhatsApp is testing a new ‘Restricted Groups’ feature which will give the group administrator more powers. According to a report from WABetaInfo, the messaging platform has submitted the “Restricted Groups” setting via Google Play Beta programme in the version 2.17.430.

Essentially, the new feature promises to give the administrator more power in a group chat. The report said that the administrator is free to restrict a member from sending text messages, photographs, GIFs, or voice messages. Once restricted, you can use the ‘Message Admin’ button to send a message to the group.  You will be able to send message to the administrator of the group, who will ultimately decide whether it will be seen by other members of the group – or rejected completely.

The Restricted group feature can be enabled by anyone with an administrator authority within the group chat. The settings can be changed every 72 hours, meaning group members can be silenced for a few hours at a time.

WABetaInfo, which tracks upcoming WhatsApp features wrote: “WhatsApp will prevent the group creator to be deleted from the group by other administrators. This will help the group creator to have the full control of the group.· The administrators will be able to choose if other participants can modify the subject of the group, its icon and its description.”

The feature is currently supported by Android and iOS beta, but WhatsApp has disabled it on its servers. At the moment, WhatsApp group administrator has the authority to add new members to the group. Members are free to post anything in the group.

The legal battle between Apple and Qualcomm is even hotter than you might have thought -- so hot they were suing each other on the same day. While Apple was busy suing Qualcomm over Snapdragon chips on November 29th, Qualcomm was filing its own lawsuit claiming that phones ranging from the iPhone 7 to the iPhone X violate 16 patents, including power-saving methods, interfaces and even camera autofocus.

There's a matching complaint with the US International Trade Commission that would ban imports (and thus sales) of the iPhone X and other models over five of the patents.

As with Qualcomm's previous ITC tussle, the new ITC case is conspicuously focused only on those iPhones that use Intel's wireless chipsets.
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Apple has declined to comment. With these back-to-back lawsuits, though, it's clearer than ever that the companies are trying to force each other's hand. Qualcomm in particular rejects Apple's claim that its royalty demands are excessive, and it could use the threat of bans on cutting-edge iPhones as a strong bargaining chip. Even if the lawsuit and ITC complaint take a while (ITC cases are usually faster), there's a good chance that bans on the iPhone 8 and X could do tangible damage to Apple's bottom line and push it to the negotiating table. Not that Apple is likely to buckle -- in addition to its own lawsuits, it has the support of the FTC's investigation into Qualcomm's alleged antitrust practices.