2019 was a hell of a year for phones, but in many ways, it was just setting the stage for the top trends that will continue to dominate 2020. Devices like the rumored Galaxy S11 and Huawei P40 Pro have the chance to bring dramatic changes to an industry that was widely considered stagnant this time last year. Since then, we saw the first 5G phones that can command wildly high data speeds and foldable screens that bend in half.
Looking forward, we’ll see these features beefed up and gain new tricks — cameras with oodles of megapixels, phones with outrageously large batteries and screens that give you smoother graphics. We’ll see more 5G in more phones. We’ll also get some clarity over the role of foldable phones, if they have one at all beyond this fascinating period of experimentation.
Here are the most important things you have to look forward to with this year’s phones.
5G becomes more mainstream in 2020
5G networks kicked off in 2019, and at least a handful of phones had to be there to support them. Most of these devices were variants of premium models, with boosted price tags and limited 5G networks to work with.
There were a few success stories. This past September, Samsung said it sold 2 million 5G phones in its home country of South Korea, and some brands worked on cheaper 5G phones like the $520 Xiaomi Mi 9 Pro. But on the whole, there was much ado about nothing, especially since the chips inside aren’t terribly efficient yet and tend to chew through battery when you’re actually using a 5G connection.
5G phones also have a tendency to overheat when it’s hot out, with the 5G connection shutting down to keep the phone from reaching dangerous internal temperatures.
Despite 2019’s growing pains, 5G is still inevitable. In countries where carriers are building out their 5G networks, expect every premium phone to be either 5G-ready or have a 5G variant. For example, Samsung’s Galaxy S11 could be one of the first to bring 5G to many more people.
Once 5G networks become more widespread, phones will be able to access significantly higher data speeds and more responsive service, which could mean:
Lighting-fast downloads of large files, like Netflix shows to watch offline.
Seamless video calls.
Amazing graphics on streaming real-time games and AR experiences.
A split-second advantage in responsiveness when shooters like Fortnite.
Will it fold? Phone screens that bend in half are still in question.
Angela Lang/CNET
Foldable phones get real
If 2019 was the year of seeing foldable phones come to life, then 2020 is about determining if phone screens that bend are a potential future or a gimmick destined to be forgotten like 3D displays.
Samsung, Motorola and Huawei have launched foldable phones that work, each with their own design. The Galaxy Fold gives us a book design that opens into a tablet. The even larger Mate X has one big wraparound screen around the outside of the device, which can be used three different ways. And the Motorola Razr is a small phone flips up vertically to reveal a tall, narrow display within.
Foldable phones seek to give you a larger screen in a much smaller body. In 2019, they’re expensive, ranging from $1,500 for the totable Razr to over $2,000 for the Galaxy Fold and roughly $2,400 for the Mate X.
That’s at least 50% more expensive up front than you’d spend on a premium superphone, like the $1,000 iPhone 11 Pro. Consider, too, that foldable phone screens are made of plastic, a more fragile material than glass. They’re more prone to scratches and damage from too much direct pressure.
Mobile phone photography made deep strides in 2019, with advancements in telephoto quality and advanced image processing. For example, telephoto and/or wide-angle sensors have now become standard for high-end phones. The Huawei P30 Pro is notable for its periscope lens that achieves incredible zoom results using a combination of optical and digital zoom.
Phone brands are also using sophisticated sensors and post-processing to achieve shots that were previously only achievable on DSLR cameras. The standout was Google Pixel 4’s astrophotography mode, which is capable of taking sharp photos of the starry sky, assuming you’re in a dark enough place to begin with. It’s astounding.
In 2020, new phone processors will be able to support up to 200-megapixel cameras, and advancements will come to telephoto and ultra-wide angle photography, particularly with more top-tier phones using 5x optical zoom. Slow-motion and high-resolution video will also get a boost, thanks to more powerful processors.
Whoa. Once you get to the right place, you *can* take astrophotography photos with @madebygoogle Pixel 4. This was in New Mexico, very cold 10°F with clear air, the Orion constellation above juniper trees lit faintly by my sister’s bedroom light. 4 minutes of combined exposures. pic.twitter.com/esBSfDECb8
Screens on high-end phones will continue to be crisp, detailed and saturated with color. But also expect them to get “faster,” with refresh rates of 120Hz — the Galaxy S11 is rumored to build the feature in.
The standard refresh rate is currently 60Hz. That indicates the number of times the images on your display update per second. So, 60Hz equals 60 refreshes, and 120Hz equals 120 refreshes per second.
A faster refresh rate makes graphics look smoother, which is important for fast-paced and graphically heavy games. But It also enhances graphics for 4K video, screen animations and even scrolling through a web page or your app drawer.
The Pixel 4 has a “fast” screen… if you turn the feature on.
Angela Lang/CNET
A high refresh rate could also help improve the detail or responsiveness of AR graphics, an area that’s got a lot of potential, but is mostly used in games right now, like Pokemon Go, Minecraft Earth and Harry Potter: Wizards Unite.
Right now, only a handful of phones have 90Hz or 120Hz screens built in, like the OnePlus 7T and Google Pixel 4. The setting is optional, because increasing the screen refresh rate by 50% (90Hz) or 100% (120Hz) takes a toll on your battery.
Fast charging will get faster
Your phone is only as good as its battery, because if it runs out of charge, or you’re dashing for the nearest outlet, then your phone’s no good to you.
A bigger battery that holds more charge is one solution. Fast-charging is another. The idea is that if you can’t get everything you need out of your battery, you can at least give yourself most of one in as little as 30 minutes.
The iPhone 11 Pro comes with an 18-watt fast-charger in the box.
Angela Lang/CNET
For example, the Galaxy Note 10 Plus comes with a 25-watt charger that fills up your empty battery in about an hour. It also works with a 45-watt charger that fills your battery up in half the time.
So it’s pretty inevitable that fast charging and battery maintenance are going to become even more of a hot topic in 2020. The fastest fast chargers will start showing up as a matter of course, and we could potentially see Samsung start including 45-watt chargers in the box for its most expensive phones.
Phone prices have been on the rise in the last several years, with new camera features and larger screen sizes used to justify the hike in cost.
Enter 5G, foldable phone designs and even more camera, battery and processor enhancements and it’s clear to see that prices will only go up, at least on the high end. We’ll always see more moderate pricing for midrange phones, especially those that use older technology.
Phones that are 4G-only, or which use a midrange 5G processor like the Snapdragon 765 chipset will also be able to dodge the steepest costs. But on the whole, expect 5G phones to cost more than 4G phones with the same parts. Also expect that affordable 5G phones will downshift specs in exchange for 5G support — and they might not be all that good.
Although no one likes a know-it-all, they dominate the Internet.
The Internet began as a vast repository of information. It quickly became a breeding ground for self-proclaimed experts seeking what most people desire: recognition and money.
Today, anyone with an Internet connection and some typing skills can position themselves, regardless of their education or experience, as a subject matter expert (SME). From relationship advice, career coaching, and health and nutrition tips to citizen journalists practicing pseudo-journalism, the Internet is awash with individuals—Internet talking heads—sharing their “insights,” which are, in large part, essentially educated guesses without the education or experience.
The Internet has become a 24/7/365 sitcom where armchair experts think they’re the star.
Not long ago, years, sometimes decades, of dedicated work and acquiring education in one’s field was once required to be recognized as an expert. The knowledge and opinions of doctors, scientists, historians, et al. were respected due to their education and experience. Today, a social media account and a knack for hyperbole are all it takes to present oneself as an “expert” to achieve Internet fame that can be monetized.
On the Internet, nearly every piece of content is self-serving in some way.
The line between actual expertise and self-professed knowledge has become blurry as an out-of-focus selfie. Inadvertently, social media platforms have created an informal degree program where likes and shares are equivalent to degrees. After reading selective articles, they’ve found via and watching some TikTok videos, a person can post a video claiming they’re an herbal medicine expert. Their new “knowledge,” which their followers will absorb, claims that Panda dung tea—one of the most expensive teas in the world and isn’t what its name implies—cures everything from hypertension to existential crisis. Meanwhile, registered dietitians are shaking their heads, wondering how to compete against all the misinformation their clients are exposed to.
More disturbing are individuals obsessed with evangelizing their beliefs or conspiracy theories. These people write in-depth blog posts, such as Elvis Is Alive and the Moon Landings Were Staged, with links to obscure YouTube videos, websites, social media accounts, and blogs. Regardless of your beliefs, someone or a group on the Internet shares them, thus confirming your beliefs.
Misinformation is the Internet’s currency used to get likes, shares, and engagement; thus, it often spreads like a cosmic joke. Consider the prevalence of clickbait headlines:
You Won’t Believe What Taylor Swift Says About Climate Change!
This Bedtime Drink Melts Belly Fat While You Sleep!
In One Week, I Turned $10 Into $1 Million!
Titles that make outrageous claims are how the content creator gets reads and views, which generates revenue via affiliate marketing, product placement, and pay-per-click (PPC) ads. Clickbait headlines are how you end up watching a TikTok video by a purported nutrition expert adamantly asserting you can lose belly fat while you sleep by drinking, for 14 consecutive days, a concoction of raw eggs, cinnamon, and apple cider vinegar 15 minutes before going to bed.
Our constant search for answers that’ll explain our convoluted world and our desire for shortcuts to success is how Internet talking heads achieve influencer status. Because we tend to seek low-hanging fruits, we listen to those with little experience or knowledge of the topics they discuss yet are astute enough to know what most people want to hear.
There’s a trend, more disturbing than spreading misinformation, that needs to be called out: individuals who’ve never achieved significant wealth or traded stocks giving how-to-make-easy-money advice, the appeal of which is undeniable. Several people I know have lost substantial money by following the “advice” of Internet talking heads.
Anyone on social media claiming to have a foolproof money-making strategy is lying. They wouldn’t be peddling their money-making strategy if they could make easy money.
Successful people tend to be secretive.
Social media companies design their respective algorithms to serve their advertisers—their source of revenue—interest; hence, content from Internet talking heads appears most prominent in your feeds. When a video of a self-professed expert goes viral, likely because it pressed an emotional button, the more people see it, the more engagement it receives, such as likes, shares and comments, creating a cycle akin to a tornado.
Imagine scrolling through your TikTok feed and stumbling upon a “scientist” who claims they can predict the weather using only aluminum foil, copper wire, sea salt and baking soda. You chuckle, but you notice his video got over 7,000 likes, has been shared over 600 times and received over 400 comments. You think to yourself, “Maybe this guy is onto something.” What started as a quest to achieve Internet fame evolved into an Internet-wide belief that weather forecasting can be as easy as DIY crafts.
Since anyone can call themselves “an expert,” you must cultivate critical thinking skills to distinguish genuine expertise from self-professed experts’ self-promoting nonsense. While the absurdity of the Internet can be entertaining, misinformation has serious consequences. The next time you read a headline that sounds too good to be true, it’s probably an Internet talking head making an educated guess; without the education seeking Internet fame, they can monetize.
TORONTO – A new survey says a majority of software engineers and developers feel tight project deadlines can put safety at risk.
Seventy-five per cent of the 1,000 global workers who responded to the survey released Tuesday say pressure to deliver projects on time and on budget could be compromising critical aspects like safety.
The concern is even higher among engineers and developers in North America, with 77 per cent of those surveyed on the continent reporting the urgency of projects could be straining safety.
The study was conducted between July and September by research agency Coleman Parkes and commissioned by BlackBerry Ltd.’s QNX division, which builds connected-car technology.
The results reflect a timeless tug of war engineers and developers grapple with as they balance the need to meet project deadlines with regulations and safety checks that can slow down the process.
Finding that balance is an issue that developers of even the simplest appliances face because of advancements in technology, said John Wall, a senior vice-president at BlackBerry and head of QNX.
“The software is getting more complicated and there is more software whether it’s in a vehicle, robotics, a toaster, you name it… so being able to patch vulnerabilities, to prevent bad actors from doing malicious acts is becoming more and more important,” he said.
The medical, industrial and automotive industries have standardized safety measures and anything they produce undergoes rigorous testing, but that work doesn’t happen overnight. It has to be carried out from the start and then at every step of the development process.
“What makes safety and security difficult is it’s an ongoing thing,” Wall said. “It’s not something where you’ve done it, and you are finished.”
The Waterloo, Ont.-based business found 90 per cent of its survey respondents reported that organizations are prioritizing safety.
However, when asked about why safety may not be a priority for their organization, 46 per cent of those surveyed answered cost pressures and 35 per cent said a lack of resources.
That doesn’t surprise Wall. Delays have become rampant in the development of tech, and in some cases, stand to push back the launch of vehicle lines by two years, he said.
“We have to make sure that people don’t compromise on safety and security to be able to get products out quicker,” he said.
“What we don’t want to see is people cutting corners and creating unsafe situations.”
The survey also took a peek at security breaches, which have hit major companies like London Drugs, Indigo Books & Music, Giant Tiger and Ticketmaster in recent years.
About 40 per cent of the survey’s respondents said they have encountered a security breach in their employer’s operating system. Those breaches resulted in major impacts for 27 per cent of respondents, moderate impacts for 42 per cent and minor impacts for 27 per cent.
“There are vulnerabilities all the time and this is what makes the job very difficult because when you ship the software, presumably the software has no security vulnerabilities, but things get discovered after the fact,” Wall said.
Security issues, he added, have really come to the forefront of the problems developers face, so “really without security, you have no safety.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 8, 2024.
As online shoppers hunt for bargains offered by Amazon during its annual fall sale this week, cybersecurity researchers are warning Canadians to beware of an influx of scammers posing as the tech giant.
In the 30 days leading up to Amazon’s Prime Big Deal Days, taking place Tuesday and Wednesday, there were more than 1,000 newly registered Amazon-related web domains, according to Check Point Software Technologies, a company that offers cybersecurity solutions.
The company said it deemed 88 per cent of those domains malicious or suspicious, suggesting they could have been set up by scammers to prey on vulnerable consumers. One in every 54 newly created Amazon-related domain included the phrase “Amazon Prime.”
“They’re almost indiscernible from the real Amazon domain,” said Robert Falzon, head of engineering at Check Point in Canada.
“With all these domains registered that look so similar, it’s tricking a lot of people. And that’s the whole intent here.”
Falzon said Check Point Research sees an uptick in attempted scams around big online shopping days throughout the year, including Prime Days.
Scams often come in the form of phishing emails, which are deceptive messages that appear to be from a reputable source in attempt to steal sensitive information.
In this case, he said scammers posing as Amazon commonly offer “outrageous” deals that appear to be associated with Prime Days, in order to trick recipients into clicking on a malicious link.
The cybersecurity firm said it has identified and blocked 100 unique Amazon Prime-themed scam emails targeting organizations and consumers over the past two weeks.
Scammers also target Prime members with unsolicited calls, claiming urgent account issues and requesting payment information.
“It’s like Christmas for them,” said Falzon.
“People expect there to be significant savings on Prime Day, so they’re not shocked that they see something of significant value. Usually, the old adage applies: If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.”
Amazon’s website lists a number of red flags that it recommends customers watch for to identify a potential impersonation scam.
Those include false urgency, requests for personal information, or indications that the sender prefers to complete the purchase outside of the Amazon website or mobile app.
Scammers may also request that customers exclusively pay with gift cards, a claim code or PIN. Any notifications about an order or delivery for an unexpected item should also raise alarm bells, the company says.
“During busy shopping moments, we tend to see a rise in impersonation scams reported by customers,” said Amazon spokeswoman Octavia Roufogalis in a statement.
“We will continue to invest in protecting consumers and educating the public on scam avoidance. We encourage consumers to report suspected scams to us so that we can protect their accounts and refer bad actors to law enforcement to help keep consumers safe.”
Falzon added that these scams are more successful than people might think.
As of June 30, the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre said there had been $284 million lost to fraud so far this year, affecting 15,941 victims.
But Falzon said many incidents go unreported, as some Canadians who are targeted do not know how or where to flag a scam, or may choose not to out of embarrassment.
Check Point recommends Amazon customers take precautions while shopping on Prime Days, including by checking URLs carefully, creating strong passwords on their accounts, and avoiding personal information being shared such as their birthday or social security number.
The cybersecurity company said consumers should also look for “https” at the beginning of a website URL, which indicates a secure connection, and use credit cards rather than debit cards for online shopping, which offer better protection and less liability if stolen.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 8, 2024.
