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.

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Payments gateway Razorpay and investment platform Zerodha entered the billion-dollar club, as digital payments and investments boomed.

The boom in online education made a decacorn of learning platform Byju’s and sparked a flurry of investments in the edtech space, notably in Vedantu, Unacademy and Topprs. The trend is set to hold up.

It was time to say goodbye for one of the banking industry’s most prominent faces. After a 25-year stint that saw HDFC Bank go from a start-up to an industry leader, Aditya Puri stepped down as its CEO in October as he turned 70, paving the way for Sashidhar Jagdishan.

Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries went on a fund-raising spree, ending the year with a Rs 1.25-trillion boost from a long list of investors, including Facebook. The gush of fund was chiefly into the telecom venture, Jio Platforms. Facebook’s Rs 43,574 crore for a minority stake in Jio was the largest FDI for a minority stake in an Indian tech firm ever.

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The Hammer KO is a pair of entry-level true wireless stereo earbuds manufactured by home-grown technology startup Hammer. These basic wireless earbuds come with a hook-based design for a secure fit – that seems to set it apart from peers in the budget segment. Except for hooks, however, there is nothing novel about these earbuds. They have Bluetooth v5.0 for connectivity, microphones for voice calls, touch controls and IPX4 water resistance rating.

So far as design is concerned, these earbuds are not ergonomically sound, thanks to their hook-based build. But they sure are lightweight. The earbuds are made mostly of plastic, with matte texture on the outer side, and rubber hooks. The ear hooks do make them comfortable to wear, but the Hammer KO lacks snug fit, despite being an in-ear earphones. This hampers the earbuds’ passive noise isolation capability. They do not come off the ears easily, thanks to the hooks, but you need to constantly adjust them for optimal fit. On the positive side, the earbuds’ ear tips are soft and do not cause any unnecessary discomfort, even when used for extended hours. The earbuds come in a rather big storage-cum-charging case, which is not best for carrying around in hand or jeans pockets. Moreover, the case has an aged microUSB port for charging.

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As video calling became the norm in the pandemic-hit year, Google Duo and Google Meet hosted over one trillion minutes of video calls globally — equal to more than 18 billion hour-long virtual workouts in a single year.

The company said that with your Gmail account, Meet calls are unlimited through March 31, 2021 so that families can enjoy holiday traditions without interruptions.

In 2020, Google added a Meet tab in Gmail so that with one tap, people can jump from an email to a video call.

“We also brought Meet to Nest Hub Max and Chromecast to help people get up, move around, and have hands-free calls at home,” said Dave Citron, Director of Product Management, Google Duo & Google Meet.

“Google Meet and Google Duo were built with an emphasis on privacy and security, to keep your calls and meetings safe and your information private”.

The Google app crossed 100 million users daily and its daily user numbers “had a peak of 235 million” in the third quarter of this year, according to the BBC.

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Coronavirus induced lockdown and subsequent restrictions on movement pushed people inside home for most part of this year. The changed environment, however, did not deter camera makers from introducing new products in the market. While the mirrorless cameras continue to make inroads in the camera segment, niche products like instant cameras also drove the sentiment. Of the many launches this year, Business Standard lists the best four cameras launched in 2020:

Fujifilm X-T200

Mirrorless cameras have come a long way. The new breed of mirrorless cameras is compact yet powerful. The Fujifilm X-T200 is one of the new-age mirrorless camera aimed at vloggers and those switching from a standard DSLR.

The XT-200’s appeal lies in its retro look and small body. It comes with a 24.2-megapixel sensor with improved autofocus system aided by phase detection technology and supports 4K video recording at 30 frames per second.

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Microsoft this year launched not one but two gaming consoles – the top-end Xbox Series X and a cheaper digital-only model Xbox Series S. The Xbox Series X is a premium gaming console that boasts the best of the company’s technological prowess, being the most advanced gaming console available in India at present. It is no surprise that the Xbox Series S pales in comparison to this high-tech model, but by no means is the affordable model incompetent. Instead, it seems just about perfect if you drop the comparison and just it as a standalone product.

The Xbox Series S is the smallest Xbox ever made – merely 27.5cm tall, 15.1cm deep, and 6.5cm broad in the vertical position. Its petite form factor makes it stand comfortably next to a TV or a gaming monitor, even if there is not much space to accommodate anything else. Moreover, it can be placed in both vertical and horizontal positions. Therefore, you have the choice to stand it next to the screen or slide it under just like a soundbar audio system. The Xbox Series S looks good and complements the TV or gaming monitor space, irrespective of its placement orientation.

As for ports, the Xbox Series S features three – USB 3.1 Gen 1, an HDMI 2.1 out, an Ethernet port – and a storage expansion slot. Except for one USB port on the front, all others, as well as the storage card slot are on the back side. The ports on the rear side are easy to access, thanks to the dotted textured pattern next to the ports. While everything seems in place, the absence of USB-C port/s might make the Xbox series S less appealing to those who have supporting display and accessories. Disc drive is another piece of hardware missing here. Therefore, you will not be able to use any of your previously purchased Xbox game discs. It is a digital only model with built-in Xbox Store to purchase and download digital versions of a game.

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The Asus ZenBook Flip S (UX371) is among the first laptops in India to be powered by Intel’s 11th Gen Core processor. Based on the Intel Evo platform, the laptop is touted to be deliver optimal performance, top-notch connectivity solutions, enhanced on-battery time, and fast data transfer rate. Besides, the ZenBook Flip S (UX371) boasts a vivid 4K OLED screen, a premium metallic design, full-size backlit keyboard, and Harmon Kardon-certified audio system. Priced at Rs 1,49,990, the ZenBook Flip S (UX371) seems to be a solid laptop for work, play and entertainment. How does it justify its price tag when put to the rigours of daily use? Let’s find out:Design

The ZenBook Flip S (UX371) is a premium laptop with a convertible design and thin-and-light form factor. It is only 13.9mm thick and weighs around 1.2kg. Its lightweight build makes it convenient to use in diverse environments – office, home, cab, metro, etc. Moreover, its thin profile makes it easy to handle and store; it does not take much space inside a backpack and fits perfectly in a laptop sleeve cover, too.

The ZenBook Flip S (UX371) is a design marvel, at least on the outside. It has a solid build with red copper diamond-cut highlights running across the borders. The highlights accentuate the otherwise regular ‘Jade Black’ finish of the laptop. Open the display lid and it is a different story altogether. The display has thick bezels around it – especially the one at the bottom – which look superfluous.

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Wireless headphones continue to upbeat in the audio hearables segment despite the true wireless earbuds blitzkrieg throughout the year. Japanese electronics maker Sony is among the established brands that reigned supreme in the wireless headphones segment with its WH-1000XM4 headphones. Of the many launches this year, Business Standard lists top three wireless headphones that stood out in 2020:

Sony WH-1000XM4

Successor to the WH-1000XM3, the Sony’s WH-1000XM4 has it all to woo the audiophile. From mature sound signature to industry leading active noise cancellation (ANC) capability, the headphones is second to none. Besides ANC and multiple sound modes, the headphones boast tons of other value-added features too. For example, there is transparency mode to hear ambient noise without disabling ANC. Similarly, there is a ‘Speak to Chat’ feature which pauses the music if it detects you are speaking to someone. The headphones ability to connect to two devices simultaneously rounds up the package and make it a suitable fit for audiophiles.

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From a niche product category, tablets graduated to the mainstream this year due to rise in demand owing to the coronavirus pandemic, which defined a new normal where digital took precedence as home turned into workplace and classrooms shifted online. Despite the surge in demand for the big-screen slates, there was barely any new entrant in the segment and the tablet market continued to be dominated by Apple and Samsung in 2020. Business Standard lists top 5 tablets that stood out:

Apple iPad Air 2020

If there is one tablet that grabbed attention in 2020, it was Apple’s iPad Air 2020. A toned-down version of the iPad Pro, which it touted to be good enough to replace even powerful laptops, the iPad Air 2020 is powered by the Apple’s A14 Bionic chipset. Besides, there is a complete overhaul in terms of design compared to its previous generation. It is 6.1mm thick and 458g in weight. The iPad Air sports a 10.9-inch screen size only, with 64GB base storage and a 256GB top-end variant.

Price: Starts at Rs 54,900

This year, as Apple topped its line up with the latest iPad Air and iPad 8th gen, Samsung upped the ante with its Galaxy Tab S7+. This premium tablet from Samsung has it all to take on the mighty iPad Pro (or even iPad Air 4) with metallic build, an AMOLED display of 120Hz refresh rate, a 10,090mAh battery, SPen digital stylus, all-round connectivity, ample internal storage, Qualcomm’s flagship processor, and so much more that makes other slates pale in comparison.

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Xiaomi Corp. founder Lei Jun can finally rejoice after the Chinese smartphone maker’s market value swelled past the $100 billion mark, a figure his company fell far short of when it listed two years ago.

The firm’s stock rallied as much as 9.1% Wednesday to a fresh record in Hong Kong, making it the 13th stock in the city’s benchmark Hang Seng Index to have a market capitalization above $100 billion. It ended the day 7.6% higher with a market value of HK$802 billion ($103 billion).

Xiaomi, which generates the majority of sales from its smartphone business, originally eyed a $100 billion valuation for its initial public offering, people close to the deal said in May 2018. But it was only at half that level upon its debut, and shares traded below the HK$17 offering price for most of its first two years as a public company.

The stock saw its fortunes reverse in August, after it was announced that Xiaomi would be added to the Hang Seng Index. Shares have more than doubled since. Strong sales during China’s “Double 12” shopping festival have helped fuel this month’s 20% stock jump, and a proposal to boost the weighting of companies like Xiaomi in the Hang Seng Index to 8% from 5% could lead to further gains.

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