The Tech Weekender | Top news from the world of technology this week
Samsung, Apple and Motorola confirm 5G updates by the end of December, Microsoft adds new devices to its Surface portfolio, Google extends Play Points programme to India, AMD's new CPUs hit the Indian market, Twitter tests a new setting that allows you to turn off mentions and a brief explainer on why manufacturer's need to update their 5G phones in India
Samsung and Apple will upgrade the software for their 5G-enabled phones in India in November-December as the government pushes smartphone manufacturers to quickly roll over to the high-speed network. Google has confirmed updates by the end of the year as well and Motorola has already started rolling out its suite of updates.
Microsoft has updated its Surface portfolio with a new range of devices that were unveiled at the Surface event. The company launched devices such as the Surface Pro 9, Surface Laptop 5 and Surface Studio 2+. Here are the biggest highlights.
Google announced on October 11 that it was extending Google Play Points, a loyalty programme that helps consumers earn points and rewards with its app marketplace Google Play Store, to users in India in the coming week. Introduced in September 2018, the programme is available in 28 countries and the company claims that "over 100 million people find value in the programme".
Little over a month after the global release of AMD’s Ryzen 7000 series of processors, Team Red has now launched its new CPUs in India. AMD announced the four Ryzen 7000-series processors in its Ryzen 7000 series in India, including the flagship Ryzen 9 7950X. The AMD Ryzen 9 7950X is priced at Rs 55,990 and Ryzen 9 7900X at Rs 43,990. The Ryzen 7700X and Ryzen 7600X are priced at Rs 31,990 and Rs 23,990, respectively. The prices don't include taxes. AMD’s new Ryzen 7000 series CPUs are listed on several e-retailers.
Twitter is testing new features that give you more control over mentions. Mentions allow any user to tag anyone else on the platform in public conversations and posts. The problem is that it is often abused, with people tagging random accounts to conversations. The social media platform is testing security features that help you reduce spam.
The rollout of 5G has begun in the country but many users are still waiting on software updates from manufacturers that will allow their devices to connect to the network. Here's why these software updates are needed.
