Essential Phone gets magnetic headphone jack module

The first new attachment module for the Essential Phone is finally here. What did Essential decide to finally release? Its magnetic 3.5mm headphone jack dongle. The company has been working on this module since September last year and it has been touted as a major feature since the phone launched but we’re only getting it now. The Audio Adapter HD isn’t just a headphone jack, it also comes with a high-resolution ESS Sabre DAC with an “audiophile-grade amp” that is “crafted from machined titanium for exceptional durability.” No word on pricing yet but it will finally start shipping this summer.

This module is part of the company’s focus on music. One of the other new things coming to the smartphone is support for Tidal’s Master Quality Authenticated (MQA) lossless tracks. Tidal will be offering Essential Phone owners a free three-month subscription to its Hi-Fi tier so they can try out the higher-resolution audio themselves. Rumours have been swirling that Essential has cancelled its second phone and are even looking into selling the company. But it looks like that isn’t affecting the release of new hardware just yet.

Source: The Verge

A VR version of ‘Tetris’ is in our future

Enhance Games—the studio behind virtual reality version of Rez Infinite—is developing a new version of the iconic game Tetris and it’s even getting a VR spin. The new game will be called Tetris Effect and it is described as a “magical feeling of total immersion by surrounding you with fantastic, fully three-dimensional worlds that react and evolve based on how you play.” Tetris Effect is coming to the PlayStation 4 this fall and will have, as mentioned, support for PlayStation VR. The headset-enabled version will reportedly offer “fully-immersive 3D.” The game has over 30 stages and has stages that are set underwater and in space. And as expected from this developer, you get a strong focus on music and sound.

Source: The Verge

Lenovo teases Yoga Book 2 at Computex 2018

Lenovo is out here reminding ASUS they aren’t the only one dabbling in dual display devices. During Intel’s e21FORUM keynote at Computex 2018 in Taiwan, Lenovo showed off the second generation of its unusual Lenovo Yoga Book device. This second iteration is said to retain the ultra-thin and light qualities of the first one but will get better performance thanks to the faster Intel processors. The Lenovo Yoga Book 2 will also supposedly offer a more accurate inking experience (the first would let you draw or sketch on the virtual keyboard directly or by placing a piece of paper on it). Similar to ASUS, it’ll make use of AI to improve the accuracy of the touch-based keyboard. No word on release date yet but it was said at the event that we can expect the Yoga Book 2 to make its official debut later this year.

Source: Windows Central

Hands on with the BlackBerry KEY2

Text and photos by Gadjo Cardenas Sevilla

The BlackBerry KEYOne brought about a renaissance for the BlackBerry brand with a powerful, practical and capable Android powered smartphone that also featured BlackBerrys' marquee QWERTY keyboard technology. The impact of the KEYOne, which spawned various variants and colours, has continued on to its successor, the newly launched BlackBerry KEY2.

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