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We recently reviewed CTL's entry-level Chromebox CBx1, which comes equipped with an Intel Celeron 3865U processor and 4GB RAM. Despite the mediocre specifications, it's actually a fairly decent computer, especially at the low price of $219.99. If you need a Chromebox with a Core i7 processor for some reason, CTL now sells one for $599.99.
The Google Home Hub hasn't even started shipping to customers, but it's already going on sale. If you missed Home Depot's recent sale, here's another one for Costco members. You can pre-order two Home Hubs for $250 — a $50 discount over the normal price.
Android TV devices are supposed to have all the functionality of a Chromecast, since they also act as Cast targets. However, there are still some quirks that remained unresolved. Netflix integration with Google Assistant went live nearly two years ago, allowing users to say "Hey Google, play The Office on Netflix" (or something to that effect) to an Assistant speaker, and the content will start playing on their default TV.
Motorola has been churning through its backlog of GPL obligations lately. The company released kernel sources for the Moto E5 Play Android Go Edition a few days ago, followed by updated source code for the Moto G5. Now the kernel package for the E5 Plus is out on GitHub.
Google automatically backs up some of your phone's data, like SMS messages (Nexus/Pixel only) and call history, to the cloud. That way, if you need to wipe your device or it gets lost/stolen, you're not completely out of luck. Android Pie includes changes to how these backups are stored, so not even Google can read your data.
Asus launched the ZenFone 4 Selfie last year, with the highlight feature being its dual 20MP front-facing cameras. The phone initially shipped with Android 7.1, but just like Asus promised a year ago, it's now receiving an update to Android Oreo.
The Honor 8X is already available in China, but many have been waiting for the phone's international release. Huawei held an event yesterday in Prague to announce the Honor 8X's worldwide availability, and you can already buy it in some regions.
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In the early days of NFC payments, nearly every store with the proper terminals supported Google Wallet and other contactless systems. However, many retailers later shut off support for NFC, insisting customers use alternative platforms (like 'CurrentC') or apps they made themselves (like Walmart Pay). CVS famously started blocking NFC payments in 2014, but now the company has finally conceded.
Last month, Amazon announced a handful of new Alexa-powered devices. The Echo Auto (an Alexa device for your car), third-generation Echo Dot, second-generation Echo Plus, Echo Sub (a subwoofer for other Echo speakers), Amazon Smart Plug, and second-generation Echo Show were some of the new additions. Most of those products were previously available for pre-order, but now some have been officially released.At the time of writing, the only product in stock is the new Echo Plus. The rest of the products are severely back-ordered — the new Echo Dot and Smart Plug won't be in stock until late October, and the new Echo Show is delayed to November 4. That being said, you can still purchase all the devices, even if they'll take a month (or more) to arrive.The new devices can be bought from the links below below.
Earlier this year, Motorola released a special Android Go version of its lowest-end phone, the Moto E5 Play. It uses Google's Android Go platform, and is only available in a handful of European and Latin American countries. The phone might start to receive custom ROMs though, now that Motorola has released the kernel source code.
All previous 'smart displays' with Google Assistant are nearly identical under the hood. They all run Android Things OS (a specialized version of Android for IoT devices) on top of a standardized hardware platform (like those from MediaTek and Qualcomm). Most people assumed that Google's own smart display, the recently-announced Home Hub, would use the same software and hardware. However, the Home Hub is something entirely different.
Google Translate's camera mode, which allows you to highlight text from pictures to read them in your native language, is still one of the best real-world implementations of machine learning. Earlier this year, a handful of new Indian languages were added to the camera mode, and now 13 more are supported.
The Google Home app has been a mess for a while now. Instead of being a control center for your smart home, as the name suggests, the main focus is video content suggestion - a holdover from when it was the Chromecast app. We first saw evidence that a redesign was in the works a few months ago, and now the new app is official.
Slowly but surely, LG is upgrading each variant of the V20 to Android 8.0 Oreo. All of the US carrier versions have already received the update, including the models for AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, and Sprint. Now Oreo is rolling out to the international unlocked (H990DS) and Hong Kong (H990N) variants.
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- The code commit for the switch to F2FS has been discovered, and the description contains a list of reasons why Google thinks it's beneficial:
All the way back in 2012, Samsung created a new file system purpose-built for flash-based storage, called 'F2FS'. It's typically faster on smartphones than the ext4 file system that most Android devices use, but it has suffered from reliability issues over the years. Google apparently thinks it's ready for prime-time though, as the Pixel 3 and 3 XL both use F2FS for local storage.
One of the new features in Android 9 Pie is gesture navigation - the three software nav buttons introduced in Android 4.0 have been replaced by a 'pill' that you swipe back and forth. The new navigation method is optional on the Pixel and Pixel 2, but Google has now confirmed that Pixel 3 owners are stuck with it.
If you're looking to deck your house out in connected devices, Google has you covered. The 'Smart TV kit' with a Home Mini and Chromecast leaked last week, and now it appears that's just one of several bundles that Google is selling on its website.
While Google was busy announcing new phones, tablets, and other gadgets, Xiaomi unveiled its new Android TV box. The Mi Box 4 and 4c launched in China earlier this year, and now the company has announced an international version with Android TV - the Mi Box S.
The loss of the headphone jack on the Pixel lineup meant there was no way to use wired headphones and charge your phone at the same time. While there are plenty of goofy-looking adapters for the iPhone that give you a headphone jack with power pass-through, no such adapter has been available for Type-C Android phones - at least not any that worked well.Moshi, an accessory company, tried to make one such adapter last year for the Pixel 2. It received poor reviews on Amazon, with many buyers citing issues with audio static and charging speeds, and the Google Store listing was pulled earlier this year. Moshi is now back with a second-generation adapter, which is already available from the Google Store and Moshi's website.
The third-generation Nest Thermostat, officially called the 'Learning Thermostat', has been around since 2015. If you weren't a massive fan of the existing styles, Google announced today that three new finishes will be available - Mirror Black, Brass, and Polished Steel (seen above).The new finishes will be sold alongside the existing Nest Thermostat color options - Black, Copper, Stainless Steel, and White. "There are now seven color options to choose from in total, Google said in a blog post, "so you can find the one that matches your personal style best."Source: Google