OPPO Find N2 Flip: Here Comes The Brand’s First Clamshell Phone

OPPO recently continues its foldable adventure by unveiling the Find N2 which is the follow-up to the brand’s first-ever foldable phone that was released last year. Interestingly, the company decided to add another foldable this year in the form of Find N2 Flip.

The new model is indeed the company’s first attempt at a foldable clamshell form factor. While the Find N2 Flip’s general shape may not look that different from the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip4, you can easily tell it apart by the phone’s massive 3.62-inch AMOLED cover display that has a native resolution of 720 x 382 and protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 5.

Inside the phone, OPPO has provided the new model with a 6.8-inch AMOLED Full HD+ screen with variable refresh rate capability that can go as high as 120Hz. Also equipped with the display is a 32MP f/2.4 auto-focus selfie camera.

As for the phone’s Hasselblad-branded main camera, it features a Sony IMX890 50MP f/1.8 autofocus camera which is accompanied by a Sony IMX355 8MP ultra-wide f/2.2 camera. Being a foldable clamshell phone with a poseable hinge, users can utilize the Find N2 Flip’s main camera and its huge cover display to capture selfies too.

 Unlike the Find N2 which is a Qualcomm Snapdragon-based device, its Flip counterpart is powered by a MediaTek Dimensity 9000+ processor instead alongside LPDDR5 RAM and UFS3.1-based storage. The clamshell phone does not support a memory card though but it still carries the MariSilicon X image processing chip which was developed in-house by OPPO and has been previously used in Find X5 Pro as well as Reno8 Pro.

Completing the device’s general specifications, OPPO has opted to implement a split battery design into the Find N2 Flip which together delivered a total battery capacity of 4300mAh. 44W SuperVOOC fast charge tech is also a standard on the device but both its charging speed and battery life were not revealed by OPPO.

While the status of the oversea release for Find N2 is still murky at the moment, OPPO has generally confirmed that the Find N2 Flip will be making its way outside of China next year. That being said, the clamshell model was not shown at the OPPO Malaysia INNO Day Experience Event earlier this week which made us wonder whether it will actually be released in Malaysia or otherwise.

Then again, OPPO Malaysia was also not even able to confirm if Find N2 will make its way to this market even though it was the main star of the event. So, we have to wait until next year to see whether these new OPPO foldable devices will be made available in Malaysia.

Still, if you need an indication of its price tag, the Find N2 Flip with 8GB RAM and 256GB internal storage can be obtained in China for CNY5,999 (~RM3,806). The device is also available with 12GB/256GB and 16GB/512GB setups which are priced at CNY6,399 (~RM4,061) and CNY6,999 (~RM4,441), respectively.

Could This Be The First Look At Apple Store TRX?

There are five Apple Stores in Southeast Asia with three of them being in Singapore and two in Bangkok, Thailand. It goes without saying that Apple users felt a little bit left out and it has been rumoured for quite some time that an Apple Store will be opened in the Tun Razak Exchange (TRX) at Jalan Tun Razak, Kuala Lumpur.

According to the last major update regarding the rumour last April, it was estimated that Apple Store TRX could be opening its doors in 2022. As the year is going to end in less than three weeks with The Exchange TRX is not exactly ready for the public just yet, you can generally take that estimation out of the equation.

But, not the rumour itself though. As shown above, this particular image which claimed to be the first glimpse of Apple Store TRX has made its way to the Klang Valley Shopping Malls thread on the Skyscraper City forum. Unfortunately, the image has since been deleted although it has since spread like a wildfire.

The deletion may have strengthened its authenticity but it is still rather hard to verify whether the image was really taken at TRX since we were not able to see the view outside the scaffoldings. The resolution of the image is also not high enough for us to zoom in to check the logo on the safety jackets worn by the workers.

Naturally, we have also tried reverse search the image but didn’t receive any good results. So, do take this image with a grain of salt, if you must.

Meanwhile, the Project Director for The Exchange TRX, Mitch Wilson has recently stated that the area is currently scheduled to be open sometime in Q4 2023. The statement also noted that there will be more than 400 stores and 100 dining outlets throughout its four retail levels.

He also revealed some of the confirmed tenants which include Golden Screen Cinemas (GSC), a Seibu department store, and a supermarket by Hong Kong’s Dairy Farm Group. The Exchange TRX will also feature a 10-acre public park on its rooftop.

Mercedes-AMG Unveils Its First Ever “Office” Chair

Mercedes-AMG, the high performance focused sub-brand of Mercedes, is now looking to deliver its luxurious and comfortable seating experience from its cars and straight into your workplace. Recently unveiled is the all-new and aptly named AMG Office Chair, which is also its first ever product of this category.

Now, some of you may recall a somewhat similar throne by Noblechairs that was released in 2019, which also featured the AMG branding (or rather its official F1 team). This new chair, on the other hand, isn’t a collaborative release, and is actually designed and manufactured by the Mercedes high performance arm itself. Amusingly, the first-party AMG throne isn’t marketed as a gaming chair despite featuring a design that is often reflected on similar products from the likes of Secret Lab, Razer, and the previously mentioned Noblechairs. And for car brands releasing their own chairs, consider this circle now complete.

The AMG Office Chair bears similarities to the brand’s A45 performance seats – complete with a bucket form factor with an integrated headrest, a metal badge featuring the company’s branding, black high quality Artico artificial leather upholstery, as well as red decorative stitching and stripes. Unique to it is a black powder-coated steel base, black back shell, chrome castors, and adjustable padded armrests. Other than that, the throne also comes with height adjustability and a control lever to adjust its reclining position. Weight-wise, Mercedes-AMG says the entire chair comes in at around 39 kilograms.

Unfortunately, you won’t find the usual fancy features that are typically offered by Mercedes in their cars, such as memory seat adjustment, massage functions and so on. But that’s actually a good thing, as the inclusion of such things will further bump up the chair’s price even further.

Speaking of which, the cost of bringing the Mercedes-AMG certified comfort into your own home (or workplace) will only cost you EUR 3,500 (~RM 15,900). The new AMG Office Chair is available for pre-order now via its official online store, though the company notes that the first 50 units will first ship out exclusively for Private Lounge members.

Resident Evil: Welcome To Raccoon City Has Its First Trailer

The Resident Evil movie series is getting a reboot, and the trailer for the first movie has been released. The name of the movie itself is Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City, and boy does it look like a wild ride while having nausea.

On the positive side, the trailer suggests that the movie will be quite faithful to the games. There were a few direct callbacks to specific scenes, and the main characters are from the games, and not an original self-insert Mary Sue type character. So you’d think that we’re off to a good start.

But then things quickly go downhill at the same time as while they were starting to look good. For one, most of the characters are unrecogniseable. The only exception is Claire Redfield, or rather her red jacket. The character that’s supposed to be Leon looks like Carlos from Resident Evil 3 Remake instead. I get that it’s not practical to cast people who look like their role’s video game counterpart, but it’s still confusing when one character looks like another different one.

For what it’s worth, the trailer ends with a premiere date of 24 November. It could be worth a watch, even if your sole purpose of doing so is to have a tally of the number of things that the film faithfully recreates from the games, and where it takes liberties.

Acer Malaysia Launces Its First HDMI 2.1 Monitors: Nitro XV2 Xbox Edition and Predator XB3

Thanks to the increased bandwidth capacity, HDMI 2.1 provides a number of advantages over its predecessor including the support for Variable Refresh Rate (VRR) and refresh rate as high as 120Hz at 4K resolution. Manufacturers everywhere have begun to incorporate the new standard into their products including Acer who has just launched two HDMI 2.1-based 4K gaming monitors in Malaysia.

One of them is the 28-inch Nitro XV282K KV Xbox Edition which is an interesting choice given how Xbox is not being made available in Malaysia by Microsoft. For those who are wondering, no, this gaming monitor is not something that is made specially just for Microsoft’s gaming consoles despite being certified for them.

Plenty of features on this 28-inch gaming monitor which carries an Agile-Splendor IPS panel can be utilized by any PCs and gaming consoles that support them. Among them include refresh rate of up to 144Hz at 4K resolution, 1ms response time, AMD FreeSync Premium and VESA DisplayHDR 400.

It is also equipped with a built-in KVM switch that allows users to switch between multiple PCs using just one set of keyboard and mouse. At the same time, you can easily differentiate this particular Xbox Edition model from other Nitro monitors by the green-coloured cable hook on its base.

Moving on, another HDMI 2.1-based 4K gaming monitor that Acer has brought into Malaysia is the Predator XB323QK NV which features an even larger 31.5-inch Agile-Splendor IPS panel. Unlike the Nitro XV282K KV, the Predator model is a universal Adaptive Sync product although it is still a VESA DisplayHDR 400 certified monitor and has a native refresh rate of 144Hz.

The Predator XB323QK NV also features an RGB lighting strip on its back that can be customized using the Light Sense software in which gamers can set it to be in sync with their games, movies, and music. Acer has also integrated a KVM switch into this Predator gaming monitor as well.

In terms of pricing, the Nitro XV282K KV Xbox Edition goes for RM3,299 while the Predator XB323QK NV can be obtained for RM4,299. Both gaming monitors are now readily available for pre-orders until 6 October through Acer Malaysia’s own e-store and Authorized Predator Partners across the country as well as Acer Certified/Official Stores at Lazada and Shopee.

Samsung Galaxy S21 Users Will Be First To Get Samsung’s Android 12 Beta

After teasing about its upcoming beta program a few weeks ago, Samsung has officially opened up registration for Galaxy S21 series users to get early access and try out the One UI 4.0 beta based on Android 12. This year’s release is earlier than usual, as the stable release of Android 12 isn’t even out yet. In comparison, Samsung’s 3.0 beta last year got rolled out a month after the debut of Android 11.

The One UI 4 Beta Program is open to Galaxy S21, Galaxy S21+, and Galaxy S21 Ultra users in China, India, Germany, Poland, South Korea, the U.K., and the U.S. with varying release dates. Eligible users can sign up to preview the OS using the Samsung Members app and use some of the latest features being developed for the final version, including more customisable and transparent data settings.

Samsung says they’ll use the data from the beta program to fine-tune the final release coming later this year. Interestingly, the beta registration is being pushed out on the same day as Apple’s event, which is expected to launch this year’s iPhone.

One UI is the company’s custom Android skin, which looks markedly different from vanilla Android. Google’s upcoming version uses a new design theme called Material You, which is a major design revamp from previous versions of the OS. Seeing as Material You is a fundamental part of Android 12, it’ll be interesting to see how Samsung will integrate the AI theming into One UI’s aesthetics.

Samsung does say that 4.0 will have theming options that span from home screens, icons, notifications, wallpapers, and more, in addition to customisable widgets. From the pictures shown of the beta, it seems Samsung phones will be getting the microphone and camera indicators from Android 12 that show when these components are turned on. And of course, users will have even more customisation options in the AR Emoji Studio.

Coincidentally, a recent rumour based on internal Google documents suggests that the tech giant might be planning to officially release Android 12 for Pixel phones on 4 October, less than three weeks from now. Last year, One UI 3.0 was pushed out to Galaxy S20 phones a month after its public beta, so Samsung users who won’t be joining the beta programme might not have to wait that long for this year’s rollout.

FamilyMart Malaysia Rolls Out Its First Smart Kiosk

FamilyMart Malaysia has launched its first-ever smart kiosk which is called the FamilyMart Mini. Located at the Shell Karak Highway 2 in Gombak, the automated kiosk is already begun to serve customers recently.

FamilyMart Mini allows customers to purchase up to six items at one go, according to the pictures shared by FamilyMart Malaysia on its Facebook page. It is equipped with a large touch screen that displays the items that are available within the machine together with their price tag.

Based on the images shared by FamilyMart, it seemed that the items offered by the FamilyMart Mini at Shell Karak Highway 2 mainly consisted of the brand’s own food and drinks including onigiri, sandwiches, and bread. In terms of payment, the smart kiosk accepts credit and debit cards as well as selected e-wallets include Boost, GrabPay, Maybank QRPay, and Touch n Go eWallet.

Truth be told, smart kiosks and advanced vending machines are nothing new in our market. In the context of convenience store companies such as FamilyMart that also sell self-branded products, it may act as a way to expand their footprint in a cost-effective manner as opposed to having a full-scale store.

Meanwhile, FamilyMart Malaysia has yet to reveal the number of FamiyMart Mini that it plans to deploy. Given the reason we mentioned earlier though, we would not be surprised if it began to pop in other areas very soon though.

The First 100 Units of Nothing’s New Earbuds Now Available Through StockX

Even though the launch event will only take place on 27 July, you are now able to get your hands on the Ear (1) true wireless earbuds which are the first product from Carl Pei’s new company, Nothing. Well, at least the first 100 units of the earbuds as it has been made available by the company for bidding through StockX earlier this week.

As you may know, Carl is one of OnePlus’ co-founders but left the smartphone company last year not long after the launch of the Nord series. He then established Nothing in late October 2020 before officially announcing it to the world in January this year.

In March, the company then showed off the prototype of its true wireless earbuds which are called Concept 1 and are said to represent Nothing’s design principles. Fast forward to May, the Ear (1) was confirmed as its first product to be released into the market.

While the company originally said that its first product will be launched within the first half of the year, Ear (1) missed the mark by a month but nevertheless, the listing at StockX marked the first time that the Ear(1) is being made available to consumers. Nothing also took the opportunity to reveal the design of the charging case for the earbuds via the marketplace which is more known to sneakerheads and hypebeasts.

To make them special, each of these Ear (1) will be engraved with the number between 1 to 100 which signifies their nature as the first set of earbuds to be produced by Nothing. While Carl has said that the Ear (1) will be priced at US$99 (~RM419), the highest bid shown on the StockX listing is currently much higher at US$787 (~RM3,325) which in a way may signify the hype that Nothing may possess right now in anticipation for the launch of the earbuds later this month.

An Actual Flying Car Has Successfully Completed Its First Inter-City Flight

The modern day perception of a “flying car” is different from what most of us have imagined while growing up. Most concepts or prototypes of such vehicles proposed by various companies would look like oversized yet pilotable drones, with some even sporting huge table fan-like propellers.

But not the Slovakian-made AirCar by Klein Vision, which literally is a car with wings that unfolds when used as an aircraft. Sure, it’s not in the same line as the DeLorean from Back To The Future II or a Spinner from the Blade Runner movies. However, it is fully functional and in fact, had just recently completed its inaugural inter-city flight between the Nitra and Bratislava airports in Slovakia – a world’s first for any modern day flying car.

Company founder and AirCar inventor, professor Stefan Klein, said that the hybrid vehicle has been in development for more than 30 years. He added that the model used for the journey has previously recorded 142 successful landings and over 40 hours of test flights.

Klein Vision’s flying car is a petrol-powered two-seater equipped with a 160HP BMW engine, which also features a fixed-propeller and comes with a ballistic parachute safety mechanism in case of emergencies. Klein says it is capable of reaching a cruising speed of 170km/h in the air (slightly below the 190km/h limit) and has flown at 8200 ft, as well as achieving steep 45-degree turns as part of its maneuverability testing.

But unlike the modern flying car concepts mentioned earlier, the AirCar lacks VTOL (vertical take-off and landing) capability, therefore requiring an actual runway for takeoff and landing. This drawback will surely definitely disappoint those hoping to skip traffic jams by taking off into the air.

The maiden flight saw the AirCar travelling more than 100km which took around 35 minutes from start to finish, with Klein himself behind the wheel. Upon its safe landing in Bratislava airport, as noted by various news outlets, the inventor clicked a button to fold in the wings into the vehicle’s back and simply drove it home.

Thanks to its successful journey, Kelin is confident that the AirCar is ready to exit the concept stage and enter pre-production. He added that a revised version, dubbed the AirCar Prototype 2, will feature a more powerful 300HP engine and is slated to receive the European Aviation Safety Agency’s CS-23 aircraft certification, as well as an M1 road permit.

TEAMGROUP has officially launched its first DDR5 memory kit

TEAMGROUP has officially launched its first DDR5 memory kit, the ELITE DDR5 U-DIMM series. The memory kit is ready for next-generation DRAM platforms which will support the new standard and offer increased capacities and transfer speeds versus DDR4 memory.
TEAMGROUP DDR5 ELITE Series Memory Launched, 32 GB Kit at 4800 MHz For $399.99 US

The TEAMGROUP DDR5 ELITE series is going to be the base variant in the company's DDR5 lineup moving forward. The kit is expected to be available worldwide by the end of June & the beginning of July (some regions).

XPG Shows Off Next-Gen DDR5 CASTER RGB Memory Modules, Up To 32 GB Capacities & 7400 MHz Speeds

The product page for the TEAMGROUP DDR5 ELITE series lists down 16 GB capacity per module, 4800 MHz transfer speeds, and twice the number of memory banks compared to DDR4. The DDR5 memory module will also operate at an ultra-low voltage of 1.1V. The DDR5 memory modules also feature on-die ECC support PMIC (Power Management IC) which increases efficiency. From the renders, it can be seen that the Elite series DDR5 memory is very basic, featuring a black PCB and no heatsink.

The memory module is applicable for Intel 600 series motherboards with DDR5 compatibility. TEAMGROUP's DDR5 will be available globally at the end of June and the initial product launch will be hitting the shelves at Amazon US, Newegg, Amazon Japan, and various major EC platforms in Europe. Gamers, get ready for the first taste of the next generation and embrace the glory of the new DDR5 era with TEAMGROUP.

TeamGroup's gaming division, T-Force, already confirmed that they are developing next-gen DDR5 memory modules with overclocking support.  According to T-Force, the company has shipped out the first memory samples to major motherboard partners such as Gigabyte, MSI, ASRock, & ASUS for validation on their upcoming products.

Some features of TeamGroup's Elite series memory include:

    Frequency : 4800
    Latency : CL40-40-40-77
    Capacity : 32GB(16Gx2)
    Data Transfer Bandwidth : 38,400 MB/s(PC5 38400)
    Voltage : 1.1V

T-Force also states that DDR5 memory has far greater room for voltage adjustment when it comes to overclocking support. This is primarily due to the upgraded power management ICs (PMIC) that allows for voltages over 2.6V. It is also detailed that existing DDR4 memory modules handled their voltage conversion through the motherboard but that changes with DDR5. The components that are required for the voltage conversion are now moved over to the memory DIMM itself, reducing voltage wear and noise generation while simultaneously offering increased room for overclocking. You can check out more detailed specifications of next-gen consumer memory over here.

As for pricing, the 32 GB kit which comprises two 16 GB DDR5 memory modules will be priced at $399.99 US. Prices for 4000 MHz (32 GB) kits are around $299-$399 US so it's pretty much in line with what you would expect of such speeds. The first mainstream platforms to make use of these memory kits are expected to launch in Q4 2021.

Mark Zuckerberg Hosts First Live Audio Room On Facebook

Facebook announced its Clubhouse clone, called Live Audio Rooms, in April. The company has been testing the feature in Taiwan with public figures and announced that it will run across both Facebook and Messenger. On Tuesday, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg hosted its first public test of Live Audio Rooms in the U.S, joined with fellow execs and creators.

The attendees for this event included Andrew Bosworth, Facebook VP and Head of Facebook Reality Labs, Fidji Simo, Head of Facebook App, and Facebook Gaming creators StoneMountain64, QueenEliminator and TheFierceDivaQueen.

The creators mostly talked about game streaming on the platform, followed by an announcement by Zuckerberg regarding an upcoming gaming feature called “Looking for Players.” It will be a new post type that will help creators find others in the community to play games with while they’re streaming.

Live Audio Rooms have a similar UI design to that of its rivals, Clubhouse and Spaces. The hosts of the event are represented by rounded profile icons at the top of the screen, while the listeners are represented by smaller icons in the bottom half of the screen. In between is a section with people followed by the speakers.

The active speaker is indicated with a glowing ring in shades of blue, purple, and pink with a blue check next to their name if they’re verified. There are also auto-generated captions available for accessibility.

Zuckerberg also clarified that the platform will not immediately take a cut of the revenue generated from creators’ content. Given the competition in the space, this decision seems to be an incentive to attract creators.

Clubhouse currently allows creators to keep 100% of their revenue and funds the shows of some creators. Meanwhile, Twitter is tying Spaces to its broader set of creator tools, which now includes newsletters, tips, and an upcoming subscription platform called Super Follow.

At the time of writing, Live Audio Rooms are only available on iOS and Android in the US. Zuckerberg did not specify when the feature will be released to the public but did hint that it would be coming “soon”.

Google To Open Its First Ever Physical Retail Store

In the distant pre-Covid past, few events elicit as much as excitement as the opening of an official Apple retail store. Now, it looks like Google wants in on all that glamour too, announcing plans to open its first ever physical retail store in New York City.

As you’d expect, store visitors will be able to browse and buy Google’s products like Pixel phones, Nest smart home devices, Fitbit watches, and Pixelbooks. Customers can also shop using Google’s online store and then collect their orders from the physical store.

There’ll be staff on site to help people with things like product repairs, troubleshooting, and installation. Google will also hold how-to workshops throughout the year. None of this is surprising, of course.

Still, the retail store will be a historic achievement. Google has flirted with physical retail space in the past, only to abandon the idea later. In 2013, the company constructed two gargantuan barges to serve as high-profile showrooms, CNET said. Then in 2018, Google was reported to have plans to open a retail store in Chicago, according to the news website.

None of these (alleged) plans ever came to fruition.

This Google Store, however, will be part of the company’s urban campus in New York’s Chelsea neighbourhood, which is home to many of its 11,000 employees in the city.

Opening the store in the midst of a global pandemic is a curious choice, though it may have been unavoidable. We’ll see if it can match the famously snaking lines of Apple stores.