December 2018 -- XDA Developers

Vivo X21, X21 UD, NEX S, and NEX A get an Android Pie beta in China

Joe Fedewa December 31, 2018

As one year ends and another year begins, manufacturers are pushing out Android Pie updates to a plethora of devices. Vivo, the Chinese phone maker, is launching a closed beta of Android Pie for four phones: the Vivo X21, Vivo X21 UD, Vivo NEX S, and Vivo NEX A. This beta will allow a small...

New Nokia 9 PureView leak confirms in-display fingerprint scanner, specifications revealed

Jeff McIntire December 31, 2018

The upcoming Nokia 9 PureView has been leaked again and it is said to include an in-display fingerprint sensor, a Snapdragon 845, and a 5-lens rear camera array housed in a chassis with bezels reminiscent of the LG G6 or Pixel 2 XL. A press render was leaked by well-known tipster @evleaks and the specs along...

XDA’s Top Smartphones of 2018

Adam Conway December 31, 2018

The year is coming to a close and soon we'll be heralding the arrival of 2019. With new smartphone trends already on the horizon, it's about time that we reflect upon the year gone by. We've seen the advent of many new technologies, while we've also said goodbye to some older ones. Our phones have...

Huawei launches the P Smart 2019 in the UK

Adam Conway December 31, 2018

Huawei is one of the top smartphone manufacturers in the world, and they're going into 2019 fully ready to take the throne. We initially learned from our sources that the Huawei P Smart 2019 was coming to Europe as a successor to the mid-range P Smart that launched at the start of last year, but...

LG’s Android Pie update roadmap includes the G7 for Q1 2019

Arol Wright December 30, 2018

Even the fiercest LG brand loyalists can't deny that software updates are not the company's forte. We've watched as the company has struggled to deliver major Android software updates (outside of Korea) for many of their devices in a timely manner. LG's UX software is heavily customized Android, which doesn't help in rolling out updates quickly...

Enpass 6 update brings a new design, multiple vaults, and other features to the popular password manager app

George Burduli December 30, 2018

I think it's a no-brainer that all of us should take our digital security very seriously. Just think about the chaos that would be unleashed if someone gained access to just your Google account. That's why I try to make all my passwords as secure as possible. Enpass, my favorite password manager, has helped me...

Essential Phone will no longer be sold by the company

Joe Fedewa December 28, 2018

As the year comes to a close, so does the Essential Phone. After it was discovered that the Essential Phone had gone out of stock at most retail locations, the company has confirmed they won't be adding any new inventory. They will continue to work on their next mobile product while continuing to sell accessories and...

Messages’ Spam Protection feature is rolling out for some users

Joe Fedewa December 28, 2018

We've known for a while now that Messages (a.k.a. Android Messages) will be getting an "automatic spam detection" feature. This was originally discovered in July with version 3.4 along with the Dark Theme and solidified when a support page for the feature went up with version 3.6 just a couple of months ago. "Spam Protection"...

LineageOS 15.1 now available for the Honor 5X and 8 Sony Xperia devices

Adam Conway December 28, 2018

LineageOS is the go-to custom ROM when it comes to modifying your smartphone. It's based on AOSP and has everything you could ever want by the way of features. If you want to see all of the features you can get from LineageOS 15.1 you can, but it's a very long list. Some highlights are custom accent...

Top New Indie Apps of 2018 on the XDA Forums

Adam Conway December 28, 2018

XDA is all about the developer community. From the very beginning, we've supported custom development on mobile devices in pretty much every way possible, and our attitude going into 2019 is completely unchanged. Every year, a huge amount of applications are released on our Apps & Games forums, and we love to share our favorites...

Google reaffirms commitment to require 2 years of guaranteed Android updates for Android One devices

Doug Lynch December 28, 2018

Many would say that Google's Android One program is an evolution of the company's Google Play Edition series. Although, the Android One program in and of itself has also evolved over the years too. When it was first introduced, the idea was to give low-end budget phones a baseline to follow. This would allow them...

Magisk Canary adds support for rooting Huawei/Honor devices on EMUI 9

Adam Conway December 28, 2018

Huawei has taken a strong stance on preventing you from modifying your smartphone, no longer providing bootloader unlock codes from July onwards. While it's no longer possible to officially unlock your Huawei or Honor smartphone (although it might be possible if you live in India), you can do so unofficially with FunkyHuawei. It'll cost you, but...