Author: Mobile Syrup

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Mobile Syrup

Apple’s iPhone 14 did get a redesign, you just can’t see it

As tough as Apple’s Ceramic Sheild glass technology is, it still breaks from intense impacts, but luckily, the tech giant has made it easier to replace the back and front of its new iPhone 14.

While the iPhone 14’s exterior design looks identical to last year’s iPhone 13, an iFixit teardown found that inside the smartphone, there are several repair-minded improvements.

Most notably, repair experts can now remove the back and front glass from the iPhone 14. The back glass on the iPhone 13 need to be honed down with a laser and then chipped away, which was incredibly difficult.

This has gone largely unnoticed since people are more likely to fix their easily repairable screens compared to the back glass, which can be covered with a case and forgotten about. However, anyone that’s broken their iPhone’s rear glass knows that the repair costs are astronomical.

Seriously, I recently crashed my bike and shattered my iPhone 13 Pro (pictured above, RIP). At first, I thought it might be a fun video idea to try and fix it myself, but after watching online how it’s done, I’d rather slap a case on it and call it a day.

It’s surprising Apple didn’t mention this design change during its September event, but this minor feature might make the iPhone 14 worth purchasing over the iPhone 13 for some people. It’s a shame Apple didn’t add it to the higher-end iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max.

Without Apple Care+, back glass repairs from Apple for the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus cost $249. By comparison, the iPhone 13 costs $599 to get the back glass fixed.

Since the Pro models still use the older internal design, they cost $649 and up to fix the back glass. This begs the question if the older design is sturdier, but only time will tell.

Source: iFixit

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Mobile Syrup

Bell introduces 8 Gigabit fibre connection in Toronto

Last month, Bell announced that it will be rolling out its 8Gbps symmetrical internet fibre connection in September, and now the carrier is delivering.

The Quebec-based network announced today that it is rolling out its Bell Fibe Gigabit 8.0 “with North America’s fastest Internet speeds,” in Toronto.

The new 8 Gigabit connection offers symmetrical download and upload speeds in eligible areas in Toronto. “Bell pure fibre Internet Gigabit 8.0 Internet speeds deliver download speeds five times faster than cable technology and upload speeds 250 times faster than cable technology,” wrote Bell in its news release. “These gigabit speeds are the fastest available on the market today among major Internet service providers (ISPs) in North America.”

The company says it is now looking to expand the new Gigabit 8.0 to more regions and expand its fibre network to reach up to 900,000 more homes and businesses across much of Canada this year.

In addition to the new speed plan, Bell is also introducing its Giga Hub with Wi-Fi 6E, which is available to customers throughout Ontario and Québec. The Gigabit 8.0 plan includes the new Giga Hub, though the hub can also work with Bell’s older plans, allowing multiple devices to connect to the 6 GHz and use the internet at once without congestion, which is great for dense network environments like offices.

Bell’s Gigabit 8.0 is available starting at $135/month. Learn more about the plan here.

Image credit: Bell

Source: Bell

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Mobile Syrup

ISED denies request to transfer Telus Xplore Mobile’s spectrum

Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED) Canada has refused a request that would have seen Telus acquire spectrum licenses held by Xplore Mobile.

The licenses were for radio, wireless, and mobile broadband services and originated in Manitoba.

Xplore (recently rebranded from Xplornet) shut done its mobile division in August. Xplore Mobile launched in 2018 after the company acquired spectrum from Bell MTS.

The ISED cites future competition concerns in its reasoning for denial.

“The proposed transfer raised substantial concerns that the resulting concentration of spectrum would impede the ability of future mobile competitors to provide wireless services and effectively compete in Manitoba.”

Image credit: Shutterstock

Source: ISED Canada

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Mobile Syrup

Google’s Pixel 7 and 7 Pro rumoured to release on October 18

Google’s Pixel 7 and 7 Pro are expected to launch within a month, but you might have to wait until October 18th to purchase the two handsets.

This leak regarding the smartphones’ release date comes from Caschys Blog. Front Page Tech, which originally leaked the Pixel 7 series, said that the phone would be on sale on October 13th. While Front Page Tech is a somewhat reliable source, the even more accurate Roland Quandt backed up Caschys Blog’s claims.

Further, the leak indicates that the Pixel Watch will launch a bit later, stating that it won’t hit the market until November 4th. Caschys Blog doesn’t specify what region this is referring to, but Android Police believes it’s for the U.S market. If so, the Canadian market will likely receive the update on the same day.

It’s worth noting that these are just leaks and we won’t know anything for sure until Google’s October 6th keynote.

Image credit: Google

Source: Caschys Blog Via: Android Police

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Mobile Syrup

Apple’s iPhone 14 Pro lineup achieves significantly faster 5G speeds than its predecessor

On paper, the new iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max are outright better devices than the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max, thanks to the addition of a new and advanced A16 Bionic chip and a better rear camera system. But how much of these advancements show a difference in daily practical use?

A new comparison test conducted by SpeedSmart suggests that the new iPhone 14 Pro lineup can achieve 47 percent faster 5G speeds than its predecessor.

The test by SpeedSmart was conducted with an iPhone 14 Pro and an iPhone 13 Pro on T-Mobile and Verizon’s networks in the United States.

Check out the results of the comparison below:

Download (T-Mobile)

  • iPhone 14 Pro: 255.91 Mbps
  • iPhone 13 Pro: 173.81 Mbps

Upload (T-Mobile)

  • iPhone 14 Pro: 28.25 Mbps
  • iPhone 13 Pro: 22.51 Mbps

Download (Verizon)

  • iPhone 14 Pro: 175.56 Mbps
  • iPhone 13 Pro: 126.33 Mbps

Upload (Verizon)

  • iPhone 14 Pro: 27.28 Mbps
  • iPhone 13 Pro: 21.64 Mbps

While the difference in upload speeds wasn’t all that significant between the two devices, download speed did receive a big boost, showcasing a 47 percent increase with T-Mobile’s network and a 38 percent increase with Verizon’s network.

Similarly, ping over Verizon and T-Mobile’s networks also exhibited a lower average latency (the lower, the better). The average ping for the iPhone 14 Pro came in a 52.88ms with T-Mobile, while the iPhone 13 Pro averaged 62.20ms on the same network.

The average ping for the iPhone 14 Pro came in a 37.09ms with Verizon, while the iPhone 13 Pro averaged 52.24ms on the same network.

The difference is attributed to the iPhone 14 Pro lineup featuring a more advanced 5G Snapdragon X65 modem, compared to the iPhone 13 Pro lineup’s X60 modem. The former can reach download speeds of up to 10Gbps, whereas the latter can achieve up to 7.5Gbps download speeds.

Read the SpeedSmart report here. MobileSyrup has plans to run similar tests on Canadian carrier networks

Source: SpeedSmart 

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Mobile Syrup

Montreal’s EA Motive working on single-player Iron Man game

A brand-new Iron Man game is officially in development at Montreal-based EA Motive.

In a press release, EA described the game as “single-player, third-person, action-adventure” featuring an “original narrative” focused on Tony Stark and his armoured alter ego. EA has come under fire in the past for emphasizing multiplayer over single-player, so the confirmation that the currently untitled Iron Man game is a narrative-driven solo experience will certainly be reassuring for many.

Notably, the project is being overseen by executive producer Olivier Proulx, who most recently worked on Eidos Montreal’s critically-acclaimed Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy. However, the untitled Iron Man game is said to be in “early development,” meaning it’s likely years from an actual release.

Interestingly, we’ve never gotten a big-budget Iron Man game in the vein of Marvel’s Spider-Man or Batman: Arkham, despite the character’s massive popularity in the past 10-plus years due to Robert Downey, Jr.’s version of the character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Sega did release poorly received two licensed games based on the first two Iron Man films, but otherwise, the closest thing to an “Iron Man game” came in 2020’s Marvel’s Avengers.

In addition to Iron Man, Motive is working on a remake of the original Dead Space game, set for release on January 27th, 2023. The Canadian developer previously worked on 2020’s Star Wars: Squadrons and the single-player campaign for 2017’s Star Wars: Battlefront II.

Iron Man is just one of several Marvel games that are currently in development. Some of what we know about includes PlayStation-owned Insomniac’s Spider-Man 2 and Wolverine and Uncharted creator Amy Hennig’s Captain America and Black Panther team-up title for Skydance. It’s rumoured that EA is also working on a Black Panther game, although nothing has been confirmed.

Source: EA

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Mobile Syrup

Sunshine, light winds, and a 100 percent chance of personal data selling

The convenience of checking the weather on your phone might be easy, but it isn’t free of consequences.

According to a recent blog post by OpenMedia‘s privacy campaigner, Bryan Short, Canadians’ personal data is sold to third parties, including the federal government, when they use weather apps installed on their phones.

The Pelmorex Corporation, the parent company of the Weather Network and other weather-related apps, collects personal information and sells it in a live bidding process whenever a user connects to a property the company owns. The weather apps that come installed on Apple and Android devices also source their data from Pelmorex.

IP addresses, locations, and web browsing history are some information Pelmorex collects.

“This data has immense value to advertisers and marketers who are looking for audiences in specific demographic categories and geographic areas,” Short writes.

Some companies buy this data to sort people into categories that could lead to discriminatory practices. Environics Analytics, for example, sorts Canadians into 67 groups of affluence. “Asian Sophisticates” sits on the wealthy end of the spectrum, while other labels like “Indigenous Families” sits on the other side.

Furthermore, a May 2022 Parliamentary investigation found Pelmorex was one of the companies that sold personal user information to user data company BlueDot, which sold it to the federal government.

“This cycle can continue in perpetuity, with our data being sold to untold amounts of third parties, and combined with other data, creating new risks for re-identification and discrimination, and further clouding our ability to exercise any meaningful control over our own information,” Short says.

Image credit: Shutterstock

Source: OpenMedia

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Mobile Syrup

iPhone 14 Pro rear camera unit rattling when used with third-party apps

Delivery dates for the iPhone 14 Pro lineup have now been pushed back to October 20th-27th. However, some people who pre-ordered the device within minutes of it going live have now received it, and are noticing how the iPhone 14 Pro’s rear camera has compatibility issues with several third-party applications.

First reported by 9to5Mac, iPhone 14 Pro users are unable to take pictures using applications like Snapchat, TikTok and Instagram. Part of the problem is the camera unit on the iPhone 14 Pro shaking and rattling when using said third-party apps.

Apple acknowledged the problem in a statement given to Bloomberg, and said that it is working on a software update to fix the bug, which should roll out next week.

The bug is reportedly caused by the iPhone 14 Pro’s optical image stabilization hardware malfunctioning and only seems to happen when used in third-party applications. “I’ve been experiencing my camera shaking uncontrollably whenever I open Snapchat or use the camera for Instagram. However, I don’t run into any issues when I use the regular camera app,” said an iPhone 14 Pro user on Reddit, while a different user said, “My iPhone 14 Pro just arrived and when I opened Snapchat, the camera was shaking a lot and made a pretty strange mechanical noise.”

If you own the new iPhone 14 Pro and have experienced the camera unit shaking and rattling with third-party apps, it is suggested that you wait for Apple to release a software update to fix the bug before using third-party camera apps again.

Source: 9to5Mac

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Mobile Syrup

Another Pixel Watch leak confirms U.S. pricing for Bluetooth, LTE models

Google’s October Pixel event is on the horizon, and we already know most of the details about the Pixel 7 and 7 Pro, as well as the Pixel Watch. However, new leaked details about the Pixel Watch pricing further rounded out what we know about the smartwatch.

As detailed by 9to5Google, a retail source shared U.S. pricing details for the Pixel Watch. The smartwatch will start at $349.99 USD (roughly $465 CAD). Moreover, the information corroborates an earlier leak that the cellular Pixel Watch model will start at $399.99 USD (about $531 CAD).

The retail source also confirmed that the Wi-Fi Pixel Watch would be available in ‘Black/Obsidian,’ ‘Silver/Chalk,’ and ‘Gold/Hazel.’ The cellular model is the same, except instead of Chalk, it’s ‘Silver/Charcoal.’ 9to5 indicates the second word — Obsidian, Chalk, Hazel, Charcoal — refers to the colour of the band, while the first is the colour of the watch case.

If accurate, the pricing could make the Pixel Watch one of the more expensive options out there, in line with Apple’s smartwatch efforts. For example, the Galaxy Watch 5 starts at $349.99 in Canada for the 40mm Bluetooth variant. In the U.S., that model starts at $279.99.

While we’re still missing some important details about the Pixel Watch, what we do know so far suggests the price might be a tough sell for many. The Pixel Watch is supposedly running an older Exynos chip and reportedly sports a 300mAh battery that will last about a day.

Ultimately, it might be too early to make a judgement on the Pixel Watch. Google is expected to unveil the watch alongside the Pixel 7 and 7 Pro on October 6th.

Header image credit: Google

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Mobile Syrup

Amazon Canada puts Nintendo Switch Lite on sale, plus offers $25 Gift Card

The Nintendo Switch Lite was released in Canada two-years ago and has seen a few discounts in its day. However, a new deal through Amazon Canada has surfaced.

If you’re interested in scoring this gaming system then you’ll be able to save a few bucks and also score a $25 gift card in the process.

Nintendo’s Switch Lite is smaller than the standard Switch and features a 5.5-inch display.

The Switch Lite is the entry-level model in the Switch ecosystem. Rather than function as a handheld-console hybrid, the Nintendo Switch Lite operates exclusively as a handheld. The device is smaller and more lightweight. Its control pads are built-in rather than feature removable Joy-Con controllers.

Read our review here of the Switch Lite.

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Source: Amazon