Richard Gao
Contributing since August, 2016
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1932articles
Page 16
About Richard Gao
Richard loves technology, namely Android flagships, as well as depreciated German cars that can be picked up for next to nothing on Craigslist. In other words, he enjoys throwing money away. Send him some electronic mail at richard@androidpolice.com.
Latest Articles
Google and Nest products have been integrated for many years now, but changes we've seen in the past few months show that the two brands are becoming closer than ever. The latest indicator of this is the virtual deprecation of the Nest.com site, with the landing page asking people to visit the Google Store instead.
[Update: 8 more banks] Google Pay adds 57 US banks and credit unions to its already enormous support list
Even though Google Pay is already supported by around 2,000 banks, Google somehow keeps finding new banks and credit unions to add. 14 more banks and credit unions in the US have been added with this update, though we fully expect to see even more in the coming weeks.
With over two million applications in the Play Store, there are bound to be a few bad apples here and there. However, the creatively named "QR Code Reader-Barcode scanner & QR Code Scanner" might be one of the absolute worst apps in the entire marketplace. At over one million installs, there's a lot of dirty money in play if even a small fraction of people were defrauded out of roughly $100 each.
Samsung was among the first to join in the Chromebook craze, and it's still in the game today with its Chromebook Plus V2. This laptop was discounted to $399 back in January, and that same deal is back at Best Buy. There are deals to be had on the open-box models as well.
Google decided to do something different with its Android Q previews — it opened participation up to twelve manufacturers. OnePlus is in that list, and today it's releasing its second Android Q build for the OnePlus 6 and 6T. Unfortunately, a factory reset is required to upgrade.
Following the teaser image published by Google yesterday, the Pixel 4 has now been caught in the wild, giant square camera module and all. It's not uncommon for prototypes of unreleased phones to be photographed — the Pixel 3 XL was found in a Lyft and the Galaxy S10+ seen on a bus, for instance, but this is very early for the Pixel 4 to already have been spotted in person.
Given that many phones are now in the four-figure territory, it makes sense for people to want to insure them. Unfortunately for those people, Verizon's Total Mobile Protection insurance is getting its second price increase in 15 months. Starting June 27, the service will cost $15/month, up from $13, and the only bonus from this is the addition of battery replacement services.
For those of you looking for a 2-in-1 tablet with Google software, HP's Chromebook x2 is practically perfect. With its included and stylusdetachable keyboard, it represents pretty good value at its $599 MSRP. Best Buy, however, is currently offering the Chromebook x2 for just 9, equating to a discount of a whopping $250. This is a pretty crazy deal.
[Update: Clarification] Google Play refund decision wait estimate skyrockets from 15 minutes to 4 days
In regards to refunds requested through Google Play, the 15-minute decision was always somewhat of a feature to me. Knowing that you can get your money back quickly if something goes wrong with a paid app or an in-app purchase has always been nice. However, Google has now increased the refund decision wait estimate to four days.
It's kind of astonishing to see how quickly storage prices fall. PNY introduced its Elite 512GB microSD card at $349.99 in June of last year, and today the very same card is available for just .99 on Amazon. If you need a bit more speed, the 512GB Pro Elite is .99, and other PNY storage products are discounted as well.The regular Elite 512GB card, priced at .99, is a U1 card with read speeds of up to 90MB/s. The U1 classification means that the minimum sequential write speed is 10MB/s, which isn't great for those of you who transfer a lot of data. In that case, the U3-classified Pro Elite 512GB card, carrying a minimum write speed of 30MB/s and a max of 100MB/s, is just $9 more at $89.99.
Amazon is basically the only reputable company that sells super-cheap Android tablets, and one of their volume sellers just got even cheaper. The Fire HD 8 is currently discounted to .98 with the Show Mode charging stand bundled in, a discount of $30 compared to its regular going price and $40 compared to MSRP.Make no mistake — the Fire HD 8 is not a performance powerhouse. You're probably better off buying something used if you need to do intensive tasks. But it is a great tablet for basic things like reading and consuming media. Plus, the included Show Mode charging stand, regularly , lets the tablet act as a detachable Amazon smart display of sorts. It's not a bad combo for $80.
Google Play gift cards have been gradually spreading to more countries for some time, and the latest addition to the list is the United Arab Emirates. They're available in five denominations from 13 retailers.
It can be hard to find a larger Chromebook with good specifications, but the Dell Inspiron Chromebook 14 fills that niche. We reviewed the Inspiron Chromebook 14 back when it was released and found it to be a very competent offering for the most part. One of our main qualms, the $599 price tag, has been addressed with this deal; the 9 figure that Best Buy is offering is $200 under the launch price and $150 less than current MSRP.
[Update: New OTA rolling out] Some Pixel phones are bootlooping on Q Beta 4, but a factory reset fixes things
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- Following these reports, the Android team has paused the OTA rollout of the Android Q Beta 4 to investigate the issue. I hadn't had the time to update my Pixel 2 XL yesterday and, sure enough, checking for updates now returns nothing to install. Thanks, Armando, Brenden!
Android Q Beta 4 came out earlier today, and though there don't seem to be as many new things as with prior Beta releases, it's nice to have notification swiping as God intended and the rotation lock button back. However, it's not all good news; some people are reporting issues with bootlooping when attempting to update to Q Beta 4, primarily those with Pixel 2 XLs.
It seems like every audio company offers true wireless earbuds nowadays, and Jabra is no different. In fact, Jabra offers four models at varying price points. Its Elite Active 65t is currently just 9.99 with a free gift card from Newegg, and there are even more savings to be had with refurbs.
We'd forgive you for forgetting at this point, but Google offers its Pixel 3 lineup in something called "Not Pink." It's pink, but it's not. Anyway, B&H is currently offering the Not Pink Pixel 3 XL for just 9.99, so if you can get over the color, you could have a shiny new Google phone on the cheap.
[Update: ZenFone 6 rebranded to 6z] ASUS can no longer sell phones under the ZenFone brand in India
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- Looking at Flipkart's listing, it seems that ASUS has taken quick action in rebranding for India. The ZenFone 6 will now be called "ASUS 6z" there. The listing does still have "ZenFone 6" in the URL, but there's probably not much that can be done about that.
ASUS's ZenFone line may not be popular stateside, but that's not the case in overseas markets. Unfortunately, it looks like the ZenFone phones may soon have to be completely rebranded in India. This is thanks to a lawsuit made by Telecare Network, which owns the trademarks "ZEN" and "ZENMOBILE" in the country.
For those of you who enjoy handwriting notes or doodling on your Pixelbook, the Pixelbook Pen is probably what you've been looking for. At its regular price of $99, it is a bit pricey, but Amazon is currently discounting it by to a more reasonable $79.59.The Pixelbook Pen is the only stylus for the Pixelbook that you should consider. It's compatible with Google Assistant, so you can circle things on your screen and have Assistant do its magic. You can even take notes and sketch with Google Keep, even when your Pixelbook is locked. If you're a more creative type who owns a Pixelbook, this is definitely something to consider.
Logitech's Ultimate Ears brand makes good products, but they can sometimes be overpriced. Case in point: the MEGABLAST launched at $299.99, a lot of money for a Bluetooth speaker that isn't 100% perfect. Over the past months, we've seen several price drops for the MEGABLAST, but Amazon's current price of 0.01 is the best we've seen thus far.There's a lot to like about the MEGABLAST (and its smaller BLAST sibling). To my eyes, it looks pretty neat, though others seem to think it resembles a coffin. It sounds good and lives up to its name with its ability to get ear-shatteringly loud. It is also IP67 water-resistant, has Alexa on board, and charging is a breeze with the dock. There are some downsides, though; said dock is $40, and there's no way to play/pause/skip songs on the speaker. Early on, we had complaints about missing features, though those have since been added in.
At the start of this year, it was practically impossible to find the Sony WH-1000XM3 for less than MSRP. Since then, discounts have gradually become more and more common, though this latest deal is probably the best we've seen yet. A seller on eBay is offering manufacturer refurbished units for just 9.99 a pop, well under any previous deals we've seen.