Karma unveils Revero hybrid with new solar charging roof

Normally, the most exciting part about a new car is seeing the design for the first time. However, Karma Automotive’s unveiling of the hybrid Revero today surprised no one, because it’s identical to the Fisker Karma. That’s not a bad thing — nobody ever criticized the original’s looks, penned by prolific Aston Martin DB9 and BMW Z8 stylist Henrik Fisker. Instead, Wanxiang, the Chinese auto parts company that bought Fisker out of bankruptcy last year, focused on fixing the car’s lack of reliability and tendency to catch fire.

There’s not a lot of new info on the vehicle yet, but the Karma says it’s “the first model sold in the US with a solar roof that will power the vehicle.” We think that means that it will contribute some extra power and autonomy to the car’s main power pack, rather than just charging the lead-acid accessory battery like the original. It couldn’t chip in much juice, though — a panel that small can’t even power the air conditioning by itself.

The Karma Revero’s infotainment system (Karma Automotive)

The Karma will likely use vehicle control and charging systems from BMW, according to an earlier report from the WSJ. “There are huge, serious, major upgrades throughout the electronics systems, wiring, charging, battery,” Karma Marketing Director Jim Taylor said in April. If accurate, that should address the Fisker Karma’s dependability issues. It will also have a new, simple-to-use infotainment system, as Karma said “if you like a 200 page supplement to the owner’s manual … look elsewhere.”

Like the original Fisker Karma, the Revero is expected to cost around $100,000. According to a countdown on the company’s website, you’ll just have to wait another 28 days for a full reveal.

Source: Karma Automotive

iPhone 7 Display Photos Show Reversed Orientation, Usual Home Button Cutout

Mobile phone repair firm GeekBar continues to share photos of iPhone 7 components on its Weibo page, with the latest set showing off the display assembly for the device. One photo in particular is interesting because it includes the display assembly paired with a front panel for the device, revealing that the display is mounted upside down compared to previous iPhone models.

iPhone 7 display and front panel photographed upside down
The iPhone’s display and digitizer flex cables have traditionally come from the top edge of the display, routing toward connectors in the top portion of the iPhone’s main logic board. The 3D Touch chip built into the display assembly on the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus is also located near the top of that display.

When the bare logic board for the iPhone 7 surfaced earlier this week, one notable change was that the main A10 chip had been shifted higher on the board than corresponding chips on other iPhones, and several of the usual display-related connectors were not in their typical locations. Instead, there were extra spots for flex cable connectors found near the bottom of the iPhone 7 logic board, and today’s display assembly photo shows a corresponding change to the display part.

Several other sites reporting on these photos today have been looking at the part upside down and noting that the “bottom” portion of the display appears different with no cutout for the home button, potentially supporting rumors of a flush, Force Touch home button integrated into the front panel.

What these sites are looking at as the home button area is actually the top of the part with the earpiece and camera and sensor holes. With the reversed orientation of the display assembly on the front panel, the home button would be at the top of the photo and a portion of the home button cutout can indeed be seen under the flex cable.

The presence of a cutout does not necessarily mean the home button won’t have Force Touch haptic feedback as rumored, however, as the functionality could still be included in a separate home button component attached in much the same way as on previous iPhones.

The iPhone 7 is expected to be unveiled at a media event tentatively scheduled for Wednesday, September 7, with pre-orders reportedly beginning on September 9 and a launch following on September 16.

Related Roundup: iPhone 7
Tag: GeekBar
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Best Heavy Duty Cases for the HTC 10

Keep your phone safe from harm with these great HTC 10 cases!

Heavy duty cases are not typically the most stylish accessories out there, but they’re big, bulky, and sturdy by design for one purpose: keeping your phone as safe as possible.

If you’re worried about damaging your HTC 10 from an accidental drop, you may want to pick up one of these…

• Supcase Beetle Pro series
• Spigen slim armor
• i-Blason Armorbox
• Cimo shockproof
• Kaesar Slim Fit Protector

Supcase Beetle Pro Series

The Supcase Beetle Pro series has everything you need to be protected. It has a hard polycarbonate shell that protects all sides and edges of the phone from scrapes; a built-in removable screen protector to prevent scratches on your screen; and dust covers for your phone’s ports to keep out dust and pocket lint.

The case also comes with a detachable clip on the back, which is perfect if you’re the type of person who needs quick access to their phone throughout the day, or simply likes the holstered phone look.

It comes in two colors, black or blue, but the blue case will cost you slightly more. You can find the Supcase Beetle Pro for around $18.

Seet at Amazon

Spigen Slim Armor

Spigen’s Slim Armor is the perfect balance between protection and style. Your HTC 10 slides into a silicone sleeve, which is then secured with a hard polycarbonate shell. Together, the two-piece case gives your phone the ability to come survive a big tumble with no significant damage.

The Slim Armor holds up to its name by not adding a lot of bulk or weight to the phone. Don’t kid yourself, you will notice it, but unlike some other heavy duty cases it won’t feel like you’re holding a brick

The added feature of a metal kickstand lets you watch your favorite content in landscape mode hands-free. We’ll just call that icing on the cake.

See at Amazon

i-Blason Prime

The i-Blason Prime starts around $14 and offers excellent protection for everyday phone users.

It’s composed of two different pieces, a flexible TPU plastic sleeve which will protect it from the shock when it first hits the ground, and a hard polycarbonate shell for added protection. The headphone jack and charging port are kept covered by a plastic flap to prevent dust from getting in when they are not in use.

It also has a few extra goodies to sweeten the deal. The detachable clip on the back of the case will allow you to holster your HTC 10 to your waist easily whenever you want, and it also has a built-in kickstand that gives you the ability to watch YouTube or any other content hands-free.

See at Amazon

Cimo shockproof

The Cimo shockproof case is perfect for people who want to make sure slippery hands never get the best of them.

It’s a one-piece case that is both a mix of hard polycarbonate and silicone, meaning it’s protected from almost anything you can throw at it. The back of the case is incredibly textured; it isn’t slippery at all, and it’s thick enough around the camera to protect the lens from scratches.

It’s available some bright funky colors — like pink and purple — in case you want to make a statement. Plus the Cimo shockproof case is about $8, making the cheapest heavy duty case option on this list.

See at Amazon

Kaesar Slim Fit Protector

Starting around $10, the Kaesar Slim Fit Protector is a two piece case that offers great protection without adding a ton of bulk and weight to your HTC 10.

With an interior TPU sleeve that protects your phone from the shock of dropping it on the ground and a hard polycarbonate shell that prevents the back and the side of the phone from getting scratched up, the Kaesar case should keep your phone looking great!

The brushed metal finished on the back of the case not only looks cool, but minimizes scratches from showing on the case itself to ensure your phone always looking in mint condition!

See at Amazon

What do you use?

How have you been protecting your HTC 10? Let us know in the comments below!

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ASUS video showcases ZenFone 3 Laser’s insanely fast laser autofocus

ASUS has posted a new video which showcases the insane speeds of the laser autofocus in the ZenFone 3 Laser. Much like on the ZenFone 2 line, ASUS makes the Laser line stand out with its lightning-fast auto-focus to improve the quality of the pictures that you can capture with the phone. The ZenFone 3 line was first debuted back at Computex, and not much has been said about them since.

From the video’s description:

ZenFone 3 Laser is the smartphone that focuses in just 0.03 seconds for near-instant clarity, and wrapped in metal for next-level luxury with peerless style. Focus in a moment, elevate your elegance, and always shoot at light-speed!

Are you excited for the ASUS ZenFone 3 Laser, or are you looking forward to something else? Let us know in the comments.

More: ASUS ZenFone 3 preview

Huawei P9 Plus review: The big and the bold

Huawei is fast emerging as one of the most popular smartphone brands in the world. A lot of that notability is thanks to its budget sub-brand, Honor, which cranks out affordable but high quality phones. Still, Huawei has done a lot of work on its own-brand phones too, with the P9 and P9 Plus arguably being its finest creations yet.

We’ve already reviewed the regular P9, but now it’s time to turn our attention to its big brother: the 5.5-inch P9 Plus. Don’t let appearances fool you though. It’s not just a slightly bigger version of the P9, it also has some extra features that help justify the climb in price. Is it the one to go for?

Huawei P9 Plus review: Design

It’s probably no surprise to discover that the P9 Plus looks and feels like a bigger version of the Huawei P9. The metal frame is thin, with a brushed pattern which is coated with some kind of lacquer, giving the phone a slippery and glossy texture, rather than a soft-touch metal finish.

Although the corners are almost square, the edges are slightly rounded to ensure the phone doesn’t feel too uncomfortable in hand. And thanks to the slim bezel on the large 5.5-inch display, the phone doesn’t feel overly huge – it’s smaller than an iPhone 6S Plus in every dimension. But the shiny back doesn’t exactly make it feel secure in hand.

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The P9 Plus’s right edge plays home to the only buttons on the device: the volume rocker switch and the small, textured power/sleep button – which Huawei has seen fit to give a red trim on the Plus model. It’s not a necessary distinction, but it’s one we like.

The USB Type-C port is on the bottom edge of the device, alongside the the 3.5mm audio jack and the loudspeaker which – similar to the HTC 10 – combines with a speaker in the earpiece to produce a stereo-like effect. This is just one of a handful of features that separates the P9 Plus from the regular model. Sadly, its effect is minimal. When the bottom speaker is covered there’s nowhere near enough audio power from the speaker in the earpiece. On its own, it’s very muted, and when the bottom speaker is playing it’s completely overpowered, which negates the purpose of them both playing together. 

One other difference is the inclusion of an IR blaster on the top edge which works in conjunction with the smart controller app to control your TV, Blu-ray player, set-top box and other media peripherals.

All in all it’s an attractive device. It may not have an overly exciting aesthetic, but it’s pretty elegant nonetheless.

Huawei P9 Plus review: Display

The Plus’s 5.5-inch Full HD display is big, bright and sharp – although that 1920 x 1080 resolution means it’s not the most pixel dense on the market, meaning the level of detail isn’t quite as sharp or smooth as you can get on a higher-resolution panel. 

It is AMOLED-based technology, too, which means colours are vibrant and contrast levels are superb. Blacks are incredibly dark, giving the screen a punchiness you don’t get from an LCD panel. It’s not perfect though. At certain angles, the screen colour seems to alter colour slightly – with whites appearing a little blue or pink.

Huawei P9 Plus review: Software

In the past, Huawei’s EMUI software running on top of Android has been the one major downside of any experience with the company’s smartphones. But although it’s not perfect, things do seem to be getting better. Albeit slowly.

We’ve covered most of it in our Huawei P9 review, so we’ll focus mostly on the differences in this review.

The one element that does take some getting used to is the pressure sensitivity of the P9 Plus’s touchscreen, which the company calls “Press Touch”. Like the iPhone 6s/6s Plus, the Plus has added software tweaks that activate when the screen is pressed harder.

Specific default apps on the home screen have shortcuts that can be accessed this way. Pressing hard reveals a pop-up list of shortcuts for apps like the Camera, Settings and Messages (among other pre-installed programmes). Pressing harder again quickly activates whichever function is starred on that list. It’s like levels of pressure sensitivity – and can even be used to magnify details in a photo, if you’re using the pre-installed Gallery app.

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You can choose which one of the actions you want to be your favourite, thankfully, but it took some time to get a handle on how hard and long a press should be in order to just show the menu. Often we launched the favourited function, when we meant to simply open the quick-action menu.

The other issue with these Press Touch features is that they’re not easy to remember to use. Some of the shortcuts are no quicker than just dropping down the notification shade, or launching an app. So they’re arguably superfluous.

Huawei P9 Plus review: Performance

The Huawei P9 Plus is one of the smoothest and most responsive phones we’ve tested. Everything from launching apps and browsing the web, through to the transition animations when opening up folders or dropping down the notification shade from the top – it’s all free of stutter or delay.

In our testing we didn’t have a single instance of delay in loading content or games. This is thanks to the built-in Kirin 955 processor combined with a generous 4GB RAM. That combination ensures there’s both adequate memory for running apps and a fast processor which is capable of translating all processes and data quickly. 

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Since this is the Plus model, it also means you get 64GB of built-in storage as standard – which should be plenty for all your photos and other media. But if you do require more, the SIM tray also has a slot for a microSD card to supports expansion up to an extra 256GB. 

Huawei P9 Plus review: Battery Life

The 3,400mAh battery inside the P9 Plus finds one full day of use no problem whatsoever. There are a couple of reasons for this. Firstly, there’s Android Marshmallow’s own Doze feature which kills excessive background activity when the phone is in standby. Then there’s Huawei’s own battery optimisation which can kill apps if they’re using excessive amounts of power.

However, Huawei’s optimisation means, initially, you do have to check through the list of apps that are allowed background use – otherwise it might kill an app or a feature that you need. Apps like Strava that track your runs/bike rides, or smartwatch apps that push information to your wearable, for example.

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In our testing, and without a smartwatch connected, we managed to get through two work days use on a single charge. And what’s even greater is that the P9 Plus comes with a rapid charging wall adapter (it delivers similar wattage to Quick Charge 3.0), so you can top it up again in no time once depleted. Around 40 per cent in half an hour isn’t bad, eh?

Huawei P9 Plus review: Camera

With the Huawei P9, the Chinese tech giant introduced an interesting dual camera setup in partnership with Leica. In basic terms, it’s a couple of 12-megapixel sensors, one colour, one monochrome, which can also act together for post-shooting depth of field effects.

Like the P9, we found ourselves drawn to the monochrome sensor because it creates some fantastic black and white shots – because of the way the sensor works they look better than if they’re shot on a colour sensor and converted to B&W afterwards. 

As with many camera apps these days, there’s a superb array of different capture modes. You can shoot slow-motion video, timelapse video and panorama photos as well as dedicated low-light modes like night shot and light painting.

Quality-wise, as we’ve mentioned with the P9 previously, the camera isn’t quite up there with the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S7/S7 Edge, but it is a wonderful and interesting camera capable of producing great images.

For a more in-depth look at the camera, be sure to check out our original Huawei P9 review.

Verdict

So P9 or P9 Plus? Well, the Plus offers a slightly larger screen with “Press Touch” technology, plus better battery life and 64GB on-board storage for its £500 asking price (making it about £100 more than the standard P9).

Otherwise features are largely similar, with both phones featuring the defining dual camera – which deserves high praise for the most part. Its controls are intuitive, making it easy to fine-tune your shots, the performance is very reliable, while the monochrome sensor is a quirky addition.

However, the overall software experience is an acquired taste. We’re still far from being fully sold on Huawei’s “EMUI” – but it is possible to download launchers to customise the way it looks to soften the blow. Going some way to counter its downsides is an excellent fingerprint scanner, which is among the fastest and most accurate going.

As an all-round device, the Huawei P9 Plus is brilliant in many ways. In the same breath, however, there’s nothing to help it truly stand out from the competition.

Pokemon Go: How to use battery saver

Pokemon Go’s biggest problem is battery drain. In a world where smartphones are notorious for eating battery really quickly anyway, it’s a double-whammy of battery carnage.

Fear not, for in the recent update to the Pokemon Go app, the battery saver feature was re-enabled. Here’s everything you need to know about saving battery when playing Pokemon Go. 

How to find Pokemon Go battery saver

The battery saver feature sits in the settings menu. To access that menu, tap the Poke Ball on the main screen, and then “settings” in the top right-hand corner.

The Battery saver option is a simple tick box, so just tap to turn it on.

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What does Pokemon Go battery saver do?

It doesn’t do a huge amount in reality. The Pokemon Go battery saver is only there to cut out one of the biggest drains on the battery when you’re just walking. It does this by dimming the screen.

It’s worth noting that it doesn’t turn the display off, but dulls to a very dark state with the Pokemon Go logo – as you can see above. During the day you won’t see it, but at night, there’s still a slight glow. 

Importantly, the battery saver function only works when your phone is upside down. The idea is that you carry your phone upside down when walking, saving battery because the display isn’t then shining out at full brightness. It’s slick, fast, and definitely something you should use.

• Pokemon Go: How to find and catch rare Pokemon like Charizard, Blastoise and Alakazam
• Pokemon Go: How to raise your XP level, power up and evolve your Pokemon
• Pokemon Go top tips: Master the Pokemon mayhem
• Pokemon Go Gym tips: How to battle, train and win

How else can I save battery life in Pokemon Go?

You need to use your device to manage other battery drain. Even with Pokemon Go’s battery saver feature engaged, it’s still tracking location and you’ll still get vibration alerts. 

If you want even less battery drain, then look for the power saving features on your handset. This will let you lower the brightness of the display when it’s on, as well as reducing the power used by your hardware, like the processor.

That might mean your phone is a little slower, but it’s not burning through battery trying to be the fastest phone on the planet. The game will still run exactly as it should.

On Android, head into your battery or power settings and look for power saver or battery saver (each manufacturer uses different names).

On iPhone, head into settings > battery and turn on low-power mode.

Pokemon Go: External batteries

Of course the long-term answer for power players is to have an external battery for your phone, or a phone with a bigger battery. Phones like the Huawei Mate 8 have huge batteries, but for many of us, buying an external battery is an easy answer. There are loads to choose from, but in reality, getting a battery pack that’s bigger will mean you can play for longer, as well as being able to easily charge your phone several times.

• Best smartphone battery packs: Pokemon power and more