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Android 11 Beta for OnePlus 8 and 8 Pro now available for download
You don't need a Pixel to experience the next version of Android
For the last few years, Google and its partners have leveraged Project Treble to get preview versions of Android on more smartphones. For Android 11, Pixels have been the only game in town until now. OnePlus is now offering downloads of Android 11 for the OnePlus 8 and 8 Pro, but don't expect something stable enough for your daily driver.
There are plenty of Reddit clients in the Play Store, but Sync for Reddit is one of the most popular. The free version has more than a million downloads, and the paid version has over 100,000. The app has looked the same for several years, and it was starting to fall behind the times. Now, a complete material redesign has started rolling out in beta. You probably want to get on this.
Motorola expands its budget lineup with the Moto G Fast and Moto E
Both phones are available for pre-order today
Motorola released a pair of Moto G phones just a few months ago, and it's already adding some new devices to its budget phone offerings. The Moto G Fast slots in below the Moto G Power at $200, and the new Moto E looks like a capable ultra-budget phone for just $150. You can order both of them unlocked this very day, too.
Lenovo IdeaPad 3 Chromebook review: Cheap for a reason
A bad screen mars this otherwise capable ultra-budget Chromebook
The first Chromebooks were budget laptops, which made sense for a stripped-down OS. Over time, Chrome OS has gotten (somewhat) more capable, and OEMs have paired it with premium hardware. The Pixelbooks and Galaxy Chromebooks of the world have their fans, but most Chromebooks are much more modest. However, few are as modest as Lenovo's $250 Ideapad 3 14-inch Chromebook. It sports a Celeron CPU, 4GB of RAM, and a 14-inch 1366 x 768 LCD. This Chromebook gets the job done—the performance is acceptable though not impressive, and it has a passable keyboard. The fuzzy, dim screen is the biggest problem, but even that I can partially forgive at this price point.
CES organizers are pretending they'll be able to have an in-person trade show in January
What could go wrong?
The early part of the year is usually filled with trade shows and big announcement events, but 2020 has been a bit different. Coronavirus has forced the suspension of most in-person gatherings -- Google I/O, E3, Mobile World Congress, and more have been canceled to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The Consumer Technology Association (CTA), however, is moving forward with plans to host CES 2021 in Las Vegas as normal.
Google is a big company with a lot of initiatives going at any given time. Sometimes, however, these projects can clash. For example, the Google Advanced Protection Program makes your account more secure, but it didn't support Nest. That's a problem when Google is simultaneously pushing people to migrate their Nest accounts to Google logins. Today, Google has finally rectified this issue. Advanced Protection accounts can now connect to Nest.
The new Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite is a mid-range tablet with an S Pen
Available today starting at $350
Samsung is one of the few major Android OEMs still bothering to make tablets, and it makes a lot of them. The company had filled one of the few gaps in its lineup today with the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite. This tablet isn't as powerful as the Tab S6, but it still has the S Pen stylus.
Motorola Edge+ review, one month later: Improving, but slowly
Motorola's return to the flagship space isn't a failure, but it's not a success, either
Motorola was at the forefront of cell phones for decades, but it never quite found its footing in the smartphone era. Early hits like the original Droid and Droid X bring nostalgia, but are also a brutal reminder: Motorola hasn't really made a standout smartphone in almost a decade, unless you count budget phones like the Moto X and G series. Cut to 2020—it's been several years since Motorola even made a flagship phone, and after the disaster that were Moto Mods, it's taking a real risk with the 5G-equipped, Verizon-exclusive Edge+.
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Human memory is a funny thing. You'll never be able to forget that time you embarrassed yourself in fifth grade, but you probably can't remember where you had lunch a few weeks ago. Google Maps can help with the latter. Your Maps Timeline remembers everywhere you go, but what if you want to remove some locations? That's about to get easier with bulk deletion support.
Google released its Files app in the play store a few years back, but it was branded as a "Go" app for low-end devices. Here's the thing: everyone needs to clear out their storage on occasion. So, Google dropped the "Go," and now the app has hit the 500 million download milestone.
Should you buy a WiFi range extender or a mesh router?
Range extenders are often more trouble than they're worth
With it likely your home Wi-Fi network is dealing with more devices in more places than ever these days, it's not surprising if you've considered making the upgrade to a modern mesh network system, or whether one of those cheap range extenders will get the job done for adding coverage to some rooms of your home. In our experience, this is one area where dropping cold, hard cash really is the only bulletproof solution. While there are situations where a simple range extender can get the job done, they're such an imperfect solution that they may just end up just making you want a mesh system more in the end. And while mesh certainly isn't cheap, it doesn't have to be truly expensive—and we think the costs are worth it given the benefits.
The OnePlus 8 is available as an unlocked device, but T-Mobile and Verizon have their own versions. T-Mobile and OnePlus are rolling out an update today that enhances the phone's 5G support with two new bands. You might not run into those bands right now, but now you'll have them for the future.
Verizon announced a few bits of 5G news today, including its 35th market in San Diego. The most notable change is support for 5G uploads in all those markets starting now. Uploads probably won't be as fast as 5G downloads, but speeds should be noticeably quicker than LTE.
Last year, Walmart released the surprisingly competent Onn 8 Android tablet. A year later, Walmart is launching more Onn tablets, but these are Onn Pro. How "pro" are we talking here? USB-C, Android 10, and higher screen resolutions. Calling that "pro" might be a stretch, but this is Walmart.
Pushbullet's Chrome extension approved after nebulous Chrome Web Store policy violations
Google couldn't decide what was wrong with Pushbullet's extension
We haven't heard a lot from Pushbullet lately, but it's still out there mirroring notifications and flinging data between devices. It almost had to stop, though. Google threatened to remove the Pushbullet extension from the Chrome Web Store, but it didn't explain why. As a result, the developers had to scramble to address Google's concerns... whatever those were. After a little helpful prodding, Google has accepted Pushbullet's updated extension.
Some time ago, Google embarked on a project to update the styling of its numerous apps, and they all became very, very bright. The flip side of that is the dark mode now available in most of Google's apps. However, dark mode appears to be broken in the beta Google app for virtually everyone who has a non-Pixel device.
Google's revamped Nest Aware subscriptions roll out this week
Starting at $6 for all your cameras, but no 24/7 history
It's been a while since we got any new Nest products, but Google did promise improved subscription plans last year. Now, those plans are finally rolling out. In the coming days, Nest users will be able to migrate to the new Aware plans, which start at $6 per month for all your cameras.
At launch, Google Lens was of very limited utility, but it's getting better. Today, Google has announced a raft of new text-oriented features in Lens, most of which are available to everyone today. In just a few taps, you can get text from Lens to your computer. If you don't know how to pronounce something, Lens can help with that, too.
Android TV has existed for years, but there's been a distinct lack of devices running the software. TiVo, which made its name with one of the first DVRs, has just launched the Android TV dongle it showed off at CES. The TiVo Strem 4K is small but runs the full version of Android TV with apps (including Netflix), live TV integration, and a voice remote.
Google started beefing up Nest account security last year after a string of embarrassing but entirely preventable hacks. Part of that effort was mandatory two-factor authentication (2FA) for logins starting in spring 2020, and the time has come. Google says all Nest users will begin seeing 2FA prompts this month.