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Officially revealed at the launch of Google's Pixel 4a last month, the search giant's upcoming Pixel 5 and Pixel 4a 5G handsets are now inching closer to release, with new FCC filings in the US lending credence to a previous report that they could be launching as soon as September 30. 

As reported by 9to5Google, new regulatory filings assumed to be for multiple variants of the Pixel 5 and Pixel 4a 5G have landed at the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which more often than not indicates that a launch is imminent.

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Interestingly, charts included with the FCC filings suggest that the Google Pixel 5 will offer separate variants for both the Sub-6 and mmWave 5G bands. 

While mmWave technology offers much faster downlink speeds over 5G than bands that are Sub-6 only, it does so at the expense of geographical coverage, leading us to assume that your carrier and region will determine which version of the phone you receive.

As for the Pixel 4a 5G, it appears the handset will only offer support for the slower Sub-6 bands, which seems about right given its very reasonable price of $599 (AU$799 / around £448).

What to expect

Both phones (including the top-tier Pixel 5) are expected to carry the Snapdragon 765G chipset, which is the processor currently driving a number of upper mid-range handsets, including the Motorola Edge Plus and the LG Velvet.

This would suggest that Google is looking to keep the price of its next flagship down, rather than take on the likes of Samsung's beastly (and incredibly expensive) Galaxy Note 20 Ultra.

That said, we'll have to wait until the Pixel 5 and Pixel 4a 5G are officially launched to find out exactly what Google has in store for us.

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In the world of competitive gaming and eSports, frame rates are often the most talked-about aspect that actually affects the gameplay experience. So when PUBG announced that high refresh rate support will be coming to the mobile game, fans were delighted.

Fast forward to September 2020, and the update is about to roll out to all supported smartphones, in a move that will surely please high-end smartphone owners. In case you’re wondering how much of a difference it makes and why it is such a big deal, here’s our experience testing out PUBG Mobile at 90fps.

While the feature will be publicly available to other smartphones starting September 8, OnePlus smartphones got early access to the 90fps setting. It’s still unclear which phones will join the list, but we expect all high-end Android smartphones with a high refresh rate display to be supported. 

• OnePlus 8 Pro review
• PUBG Mobile to get Erangel 2.0 update on September 8

Our testing was limited to the OnePlus 8 Pro over the last month. It is powered by the Snapdragon 865 chipset, along with LPDDR5 RAM and UFS 3.1 storage. Basically, the performance was never a bottleneck. To complete the experience is a curved 6.68-inch Fluid AMOLED display with a QHD+ resolution and 120Hz display. With the new update for PUBG Mobile, the higher refresh rate is more appreciable.

Going into my regular gaming session, I thought that there would just be some visual differences and nothing much beyond that. However, it only took me a couple of games to realise that it was a lot more than that.

(Image credit: Aakash Jhaveri)

Playing PUBG Mobile at 90fps can actually make you a better gamer

Firstly, the jump to 90fps from the usual 60fps is definitely noticeable - each time I’d run, pan or attack, all actions just felt a lot more instant and immersive. The other aspect was responsiveness, which can be a little more difficult to see but easier to feel. The OnePlus 8 Pro has a touch response rate of 240Hz, which is amongst the highest on any smartphone. It basically refers to how fast the display registers your input. For a game like PUBG where you switch between taps and swipes many times each second, the small increments do make a significant difference. In short, gaming at the higher frame rate felt a lot more immersive. 

Interestingly, even running at these higher settings didn’t tax the phone enough to cause unwanted heating or throttling. Yes, it was a little warmer than the usual, but nothing alarming. If your phone supports, we definitely recommend trying out gaming at 90fps to feel the difference for yourself. Going back to 60fps almost felt like the game was lagging.

It’s great to see one of the most popular mobile games finally make the leap to higher refresh rates. Mark your calendars for September 8, when PUBG Mobile will be updated to version 1.0, adding 90fps support, Ultra HD graphics, and Erangel 2.0.

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Ubisoft has a bit of a history of handing out its titles for free, with Watch Dogs 2 recently being made available at no cost on PC. Now, the video game titan is giving away Tom Clancy’s The Division (the original, not the more recent sequel). 

You can head to Ubisoft’s site to register for getting The Division for free. You’ll need to have a Uplay account and be using the Uplay software client in order to play the game. More importantly, you’ll need to add it to your library before September 8 at 6PM (your local time).

• Tips and tricks for getting started with Ubisoft's The Division

Xbox Live Gold members can also nab the game for free as part of this month’s Xbox Games with Gold lineup, which also includes The Book of Unwritten Tales 2, Armed and Dangerous, and de Blob 2. 

So long as you add the title to your Uplay collection before September 8 (or the end of the month for Xbox Gold gamers), it’ll be yours to keep, even once the offer has expired. It’s worth nothing that Xbox Live Gold subscribers will only be able to play it while their subscription is active.

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Tom Clancy’s The Division is set in a post-apocalyptic New York, after a deadly pandemic has taken its toll and the streets have turned violent. You can play solo, ally with up to three friends to help in your fight, or face off in player-vs-player combat.

While you can play singeplayer, it’s worth mentioning that the game’s online multiplayer has been widely received as the title’s strongpoint, and much of the online player base for the original Division title has likely moved to The Division 2 at this stage.

So while there may not be as lively an online community as their once was, it’s very possible that the event of giving the game away for free might help Ubisoft revive its popularity and rekindle the online action.

• The best PC games you can play right now

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