India wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant underwent surgery on his knee on Friday evening, a week after surviving a car accident on a highway in Uttarakhand. TOI has learnt that the 25-year-old suffered two tears on his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and medial collateral ligament (MCL).
Holders Liverpool were held to a 2-2 home draw by Wolverhampton Wanderers in a breathless FA Cup third-round tie at Anfield on Saturday after Newcastle United were dumped out by third-tier Sheffield Wednesday. However, Premier League sides Tottenham Hotspur, Leicester City, West Ham United and Southampton all reached round four.Samsung Galaxy S23 series is reportedly on its way to the market. The much-awaited flagship smartphone series is expected to follow the footsteps of the Galaxy S22 lineup and could include Galaxy S23, Galaxy S23+ and Galaxy S23 Ultra models. Samsung was earlier speculated to launch the devices during a Samsung Galaxy Unpacked event in the first week of February. There's still no word from the South Korean tech giant on an official date, but a new leak suggests that the event could happen on February 1. A promotional image of the upcoming event has allegedly appeared on the company's Colombia website.
As spotted by 9to5google, Samsung has put up a promotional image of the upcoming Galaxy Unpacked event which reveals the event date and time on its Colombia website. According to the now-removed teaser poster, Galaxy Unpacked 2023 will take place on February 1. There is no confirmation from Samsung about the Galaxy Unpacked 2023 event yet, but the new leak suggests it is in line with previously tipped schedules.
As mentioned, the upcoming Samsung flagship lineup is said to comprise the vanilla Samsung Galaxy S23 variant, alongside the Galaxy S23+ and Galaxy S23 Ultra models. They are expected to be powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC. Leaked renders of the Galaxy S23 and Galaxy S23+ suggested a triple camera setup at the rear, while the Galaxy S23 Ultra could feature a quad rear camera unit led by a 200-megapixel primary sensor.
The vanilla Galaxy S23 and the Galaxy S23+ are tipped to come in 8GB of RAM and 256GB internal storage models, while the top-of-the-line Galaxy S23 Ultra is said to be available in 12GB of RAM and 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB storage options.
Leaked renders of the Galaxy S23 and Galaxy S23 Ultra tipped botanic green, cotton flower, misty lilac and phantom black shades. Samsung Galaxy S23 handsets are said to have a similar price tag to the Galaxy S22 lineup.
Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G is Xiaomi's latest mid-range smartphone offering in India. The top-of-the-line phone in the Note 12 series is a direct successor to the Redmi Note 11 Pro+ 5G (Review), which didn't quite pan out to be a segment leader as many would have hoped for, in our opinion. Xiaomi is now trying to fill the void with the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G, with some segment-first hardware.
The headlining feature of the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G is its 200-megapixel primary camera. The phone is also the fastest charging Redmi Note, ever. However, the combination of premium and segment-first hardware has also attracted a higher price tag. Not only is it a lot more expensive than the Redmi Note 11 Pro+ 5G, it sits almost next to the Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge (Review).
Despite the higher price tag, should you consider buying the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G? Here is our full review to help you decide.
The Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G comes in two storage options. The phone's base model packs 8GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage and is priced at Rs. 29,999. The variant that Xiaomi sent us has 12GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage. It is priced at Rs. 32,999.
The Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G continues to offer a premium in-hand feel thanks to its glass body. The rear panel curves towards to the flat plastic frame, ensuring it feels comfortable to hold even for long durations, despite the phone weighing about 208g. Because the weight is well distributed, the phone does not feel as heavy in the hand. The device also has an IP53 rating for basic protection against water splashes.
Xiaomi sent us the Arctic White colour of the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G, which, according to me, is the best looking of the lot. The shiny texture makes the phone look striking and premium. Despite the glossy paint job, the white colour helps hide fingerprints and smudges a lot better compared to the Obsidian Black and Iceberg Blue colours. What I did not like as much was that the phone wobbles a bit too much when using it on a flat surface, due to the protruding camera module.
The Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G features a flat plastic frame
The Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G continues to feature a 3.5mm audio jack at the top, next to which is a dummy cutout for the secondary speaker, a microphone cutout and an IR emitter. The phone does have a dual-speaker setup, with the earpiece doubling up as a secondary outlet. The combined audio output is loud, but at full volume, you can hear mild distortion. I preferred using the speakers at about 70 percent volume level for a good balance of volume and quality.
To offer a well-rounded multimedia experience, the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G has a 6.67-inch AMOLED display, which gets quite bright for both indoor and outdoor use. The screen offers a full-HD+ resolution and has support for displaying over a billion colours. You get deep blacks and vivid colours while consuming content. There is support for Dolby Vision HDR, WideVine L1 and HDR10 content on popular apps such as Netflix.
Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G continues to feature a 120Hz AMOLED display.
That being said, the Realme 10 Pro+ 5G (Review) has a slight edge over the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G when it comes to multimedia experience, in my opinion. The curved-edge display with minimal bezels helps offer a more immersive viewing experience. It is just a matter of preference and if you are someone who prefers a flat display, the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G will not disappoint. The Redmi's screen also refreshes dynamically between 30Hz, 60Hz, 90Hz and 120Hz, depending on the on-screen content.
The Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G features a 6nm MediaTek Dimensity 1080 SoC, with an integrated Mali G68 GPU. The phone packs a 4980mAh battery and supports 120W fast charging. It also has support for 10 5G bands in India along with Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.2, etc. The phone has a side-mounted fingerprint scanner and AI face recognition support.
In terms of software, the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G runs on the Android 12-based MIUI 13 custom skin out-of-the-box, although I would have liked to see the latest MIUI 14 skin which is based on Android 13 instead. Xiaomi has not revealed the exact details about the release timeline but has confirmed that the phone will get Android 13 and Android 14, along with four years of security support.
MIUI 13 continues to be feature-rich and offers a bunch of customisation options. There is the highly-popular Floating Windows feature, along with a customisable Always-on Display (AoD). MIUI 13 is also primarily about system-level enhancements, such as an optimised file storage system, processor priority optimisation, and more. You also get Android 12's Privacy Dashboard, permission manager, support for new widgets, etc.
The Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G does not come with Android 13 out-of-the-box
The MIUI 13 update also promised to provide better RAM management when it launched last year, and has stuck to that promise for the most part. Most background apps remained in memory on the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G, with the exception of some heavy ones which did reload at times. There are a few bloatware apps but you can uninstall the unnecessary ones.
The Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G gets an upgraded SoC over its predecessor's Snapdragon 695 SoC. However, going by the pricing and specs, you can also consider it to be a successor to the Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge, even though it might seem like a fairly incremental upgrade. However, this does not mean that the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G's performance unit is a slouch as it is more than capable for routine tasks.
Be it multitasking, app loading times, or simply using the phone for playing games, the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G does it all smoothly. I played Call of Duty: Mobile and Asphalt 9 Legends and the experience was quite smooth. The former game supports the 'Max' framerate with 'Low' graphics but if you don't mind compromising and playing with 'Very High' frame rate, you can play the game with the 'Very High' graphics settings for a more visually pleasing, yet smooth, experience.
Does the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G overheat while playing games for long hours? No, it does not. This could also be due to the chill weather in the northern part of India at this time of the year, or the phone's vapour cooling chamber actually doing what it's supposed to. I played the games for about 45 minutes straight and didn't notice any drop in performance. It did get warm when running the AnTuTu benchmark test, where the phone scored 4,38,678 points. This score was slightly lower than the Realme 10 Pro+ 5G's score of 5,04,626 points, with the same SoC.
In Geekbench, the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G scored 749 and 2165 points in the single-core and multi-core tests, respectively. This too was a bit lower than than the Realme 10 Pro+ 5G's scores.
The Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G in its Arctic White colour
The Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G should last a full day on a single charge for most users with medium to slightly heavy usage. If you play games and record videos on the same day like I did, chances are you will need a charger by the end of the day. Charging is not a problem as the phone takes about 25 minutes to charge from zero to 100 percent, with BoostCharge enabled. The latter setting needs to be enabled in the Battery Settings section.
While the device took slightly longer to charge completely than the claimed time of 19 minutes, I am still happy with a phone that offers an all-day battery life while charging completely in around 30 minutes, even with Boost Charging disabled. In our HD video loop test, the phone's battery lasted for 15 hours and 23 minutes. In comparison, the Realme 10 Pro+ 5G's battery died after 19 hours and 43 minutes in our testing.
The headlining feature of the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G is its camera setup. The phone has a 200-megapixel Samsung HPX primary camera sensor, an 8-megapixel ultra-wide-angle camera and a 2-megapixel macro sensor. I did ask Xiaomi why they haven't been launching many phones with the much-appreciated 5-megapixel tele-macro camera sensor, found in phones such as the Redmi Note 10 Pro Max (Review). The company cited supply chain issues as the main reason for this, which forced them to replace it with a 2-megapixel macro sensor, which it claims is still quite capable. For selfies, the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G has a 16-megapixel front camera sensor.
The Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G's camera module is made of metal.
The primary camera captures detailed images with good dynamic range and vivid colours. Despite the phone packing a fairly large 1/1.4-inch sensor, the shutter is quite responsive and captures images instantly. There is a hint of chromatic aberration sometimes when the subject has the sun or any harsh light in the background.
At night, the main camera performance is equally impressive as it manages to expose the shadows well without introducing a lot of noise. The images shot in Night mode though appear slightly soft, which could be due to the aggressive noise reduction algorithm. The highlights too are under check and what I was most happy about was that the night sky looked true to the scene and not bluish. I feel Xiaomi needs to work on fixing the Portrait mode blur effect, which felt too aggressive to a point where it looked fake. The overall processing in this mode also felt a bit too sharp.
Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G primary camera samples (Top to bottom: Photo mode, Night Mode, Portrait Mode)
The ultra-wide shooter has a 120-degree field of view. While it provides a wider perspective, there is distortion around the edges and despite the software fixes, it is noticeable. The colour temperature is slightly different, with the ultra-wide photos looking slightly warmer. I also noticed that almost all ultra-wide photos shot on the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G had a light pink cast.
Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G ultra-wide camera samples
There is a noticeable delay when you are switching between the main and ultra-wide cameras. The macro sensor captures okay-ish photos but I would recommend using it in well-lit conditions as there is a lot of noise in photos taken in low light. The front camera is a hit or miss when it comes to capturing the right skin tone. While selfies were detailed and there was fairly less smoothening effect of the skin, there were times where my skin looked a bit too red.
Front camera sample shot on the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G
The Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G's rear camera can record 4K videos at 30fps with good details and dynamic range. The front camera's video resolution is capped at 1080p 60fps. While all cameras expose the subject well, the dynamic range performance is average.
What complements the hardware is a bunch of camera features that the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G offers. There is Vlog Mode, Ultra HD mode for capturing 50-megapixel and 200-megapixel images, Long exposure, Pro mode, etc. There is also this one forgotten feature in MIUI called AI SkyScaping, which offers multiple filters that changes the colour of just the sky, without affecting the overall colour scheme of the photo.
The Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G has received many upgrades over its predecessor, or should we say predecessors. I leave it to you to decide which phone it actually succeeds. It scores high points for its superior build quality, excellent display, top-notch camera performance, and very fast charging. The phone offers decent battery life as well, while packing a capable performance unit.
The fact that it doesn't come with Android 13 out-of-the-box, even in 2023, is the most disappointing aspect. Hopefully, the phone is expected to get the Android 13 update very soon.
While the Redmi Note 11 Pro+ 5G was not an easy or obvious recommendation for its segment, the Note 12 Pro+ 5G makes up for it by offering a solid package and a well-rounded experience. Yes, the phone is the most expensive Redmi Note in the series' history, but if you put aside the name and simply look at what it offers, then this one checks almost all the boxes.
World number one Iga Swiatek has withdrawn from the Adelaide International 2 WTA 500 tournament starting next week due to a right shoulder issue, casting doubts on her fitness before the Australian Open later this month.Twitter CEO Elon Musk said in an email to Reuters on Friday that hiring law firm Perkins Coie to defend the company in a California federal lawsuit this week was a mistake it would not make again.
Reuters reported earlier that lawyers from Perkins Coie entered court appearances for Twitter in the case on Wednesday even though Musk has denounced the firm on the social media platform, including in a tweet last month related to its past work for former Democratic US presidential nominee Hillary Clinton.
Musk's email said hiring Perkins Coie was "an error on the part of a member of the Twitter team."
"Perkins will not be representing Twitter on future cases," he said.
He did not immediately respond to follow-up questions on Friday, including whether Perkins Coie will stay on as counsel for Twitter in at least six other lawsuits predating Musk's ownership. A Perkins Coie spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Musk's finger-pointing follows months of internal tensions over Twitter's legal staffing and priorities since he acquired the company for $44 billion (roughly Rs. 3,37,465 crore) and took over as CEO in October.
Musk has fired Vijaya Gadde, Twitter's legal affairs and policy officer, and other senior employees as he seeks to undo what he has criticised as past censorship and partisan bias at the company.
Twitter has also shaken up its outside legal teams, with attorneys from Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan stepping in for other firms in several cases.
Musk tweeted on December 8 that Twitter "isn't using Perkins Coie" as outside counsel and urged other companies to boycott the firm. He singled out a former Perkins Coie lawyer, Michael Sussmann, who advised Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign while at the firm.
Sussmann was acquitted in May after denying federal charges that he falsely told the FBI he was not working on Clinton's behalf when he gave the agency purported evidence of cyber links between the Trump Organisation and a Russia-based bank.
"No company should use them until they make amends for Sussmann's attempt to corrupt a Presidential election," Musk wrote in December, referring to Perkins Coie.
In May, Musk tweeted that Perkins Coie and another large law firm were made up of "white-shoe lawyers" who "thrive on corruption."
The case that Perkins Coie signed on to for Twitter this week was brought last year by Laura Loomer, a far-right activist who was banned from the site in 2018.
The San Francisco lawsuit claims social media giants, corporations and the US government conspired to "unlawfully censor conservative voices and interfere with American elections." Twitter and its former CEO Jack Dorsey have denied the claims.
© Thomson Reuters 2023
One of India’s star weightlifters Khumukcham Sanjita Chanu has failed the dope test for an anabolic steroid drostanolone, and has been provisionally suspended by the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA), TOI learnt on Friday.
Marcus Rashford scored for the fifth straight game as Manchester United beat Everton 3-1 in the FA Cup third round on Friday, heaping the pressure on beleaguered boss Frank Lampard.Google is preparing to approach India's Supreme Court within days to try to block a ruling by the country's antitrust watchdog that will force the US company to change how it markets its Android platform, two people familiar with its strategy told Reuters.
The Competition Commission of India (CCI) in October fined the Alphabet unit $161 million (roughly Rs.13,300 crore) for exploiting its dominant position in the market for Android which powers 97 percent of smartphones in India, a key growth region for the US giant.
Google, however, has been worried about the Indian decision as the remedies ordered are seen as more sweeping than the European Commission's landmark 2018 ruling for imposing unlawful restrictions on Android mobile device makers. Google has challenged the record $4.3 billion (roughly Rs. 35,520 crore) fine in that case.
In India, Google is now gearing up to file a legal challenge at the Supreme Court within days as the antitrust watchdog's January 19 deadline to implement changes to its model looms, the first source with direct knowledge said.
A spokesperson for Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Supreme Court approach will come after Google suffered a setback on Wednesday when a tribunal turned down its request to block the antitrust ruling. The company argued implementation of CCI's directives will hurt its long-standing business model and consumer interests.
Google believes some of CCI's directives cannot be implemented, and the company "has no other option" than approaching the Supreme Court for relief, the source added.
Google licenses its Android system to smartphone makers, but critics say it imposes restrictions like mandatory pre-installation of its own apps that are anti-competitive. The company argues such agreements help keep the operating system free.
The CCI ruled in October that Google's licensing of its Play Store "shall not be linked with the requirement of pre-installing" Google search services, the Chrome browser, YouTube or any other Google applications.
Separately, Google has alleged in its filings the CCI's investigation unit copied parts of a European 2018 ruling against the US firm, Reuters has reported. The CCI and the European Commission have not responded to those allegations.
© Thomson Reuters 2023
The entire third day of the final Sydney Test was washed out Friday forcing a reappraisal of Australia's push for a series clean sweep over South Africa.
The last time Kasun Rajitha played at the Gahunje Stadium, in 2016, he came in as a debutant and went back as player of the match.
La Liga sides Athletic Bilbao and Real Betis booked their places in the Spanish Cup last 16 with comfortable wins over lower-tier opponents on Thursday.
Defending champions Manchester City beat injury-hit Chelsea 1-0 on Thursday to close the gap on Premier League leaders Arsenal to just five points. Pep Guardiola's men were well below par in the first half but were transformed after the break, with substitutes Jack Grealish and Riyad Mahrez combining for the only goal, scored by the Algerian in the 63rd minute.