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You can usually get a good idea what OnePlus' next phone will look like by keeping tabs on Chinese smartphone maker Oppo. The two firms share the same parent company and quite a lot of design resources. The R15 was a dead ringer for the OnePlus 6, and the R11S was basically the OnePlus 5T. The new R17 may very well be the foundation upon which OnePlus builds the still-unannounced 6T, and that could be cause for excitement. This phone has a tiny screen notch, slim bezels, and an in-display fingerprint sensor.
You probably have a Wi-Fi router, and you might have a smart home hub of some sort as well. Why not make those devices the same thing? That's Samsung's latest router, which it calls the SmartThings Wifi. This replaces Samsung's old Home Connect router with SmartThings integration. This time, Samsung's system has Mesh networking thanks to a partnership with Plume.
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In the early days of Android, it was tough to find a good music player. Let's face facts—Android itself was pretty ugly, and developers didn't have the best tools. However, Poweramp offered a slick UI (for the time) and ample features. The app has fallen by the wayside over time, but there's a new beta build that gives Poweramp a much-needed fresh coat of paint.
Motorola is still pumping out successful mid-range and budget phones, but a smash-hit flagship device has eluded it for years. The Moto Z phones with their modular accessories have potential, but consumers aren't running out to buy many $200 projectors or $130 photo printers. If you ignore the Moto Mods, past Moto Z flagships have at least been top-of-the-line phones with uncluttered software and modern specs. That's what makes the new Moto Z3 so perplexing. It's specced like a phone from 2017. Plus, it's exclusive to Verizon.
Are you watching YouTube on an inferior phone? Well, that just won't do. YouTube now has a Signature Devices program that can point you in the direction of a phone that has all the latest video technologies. Those cat videos will look better than ever.
TCL launched the BlackBerry Key2 earlier this year as its second keyboarded phone under the Blackberry brand. This phone made several improvements over the KeyOne with a faster processor, more RAM, a dual camera, and more. However, that also meant a $100 increase in price. If that's too rich for your blood and you absolutely need a physical keyboard, then the rumored Key2 LE is what you want. It's not official, but we've got new details on this upcoming phone. Most of the specs are just a small step down from the flagship Key2, but the keyboard design looks different.
If you've got a Motorola phone from this year, it already has a Motorola-branded face unlock feature in the settings. Now, there's a companion app in the Play Store for those phones. Thus, Moto can update your pre-loaded face unlock with new features. There aren't any new features in the first Play Store version, though.
So, the Galaxy Note 9 is official, and it's going to be very expensive. If you want a phone with a stylus and paying $1,000 for it isn't an option, there's always the Galaxy Note 8. that phone is on sale today for $685.99 on eBay. This is an unlocked device with 128GB of storage, not 64GB like the US carrier models.
Samsung tried to operate its own music streaming service once. Remember Milk Music? Samsung would prefer that you didn't. It has a new music partner today. The next time you set up a Samsung, you're probably going to run into the Spotify app. That's just the first hint of the integration that will be pervasive across Samsung's products.
The oft-leaked Samsung Galaxy Watch is official after the company's Unpacked event today. The latest Samsung wearable comes in two sizes: a svelte 42mm version and a more robust 46mm watch. It will launch later this month in the US and Korea, with more markets coming next month. You better start saving now, because Samsung's watches won't be cheap with a starting price of $329.99.
If there's anything Android users want, it's more white UI elements. Oh, is that not what you meant with your repeated calls for a dark mode? Google thought you were being sarcastic. As such, it has launched another redesigned app with an all-white Material interface. Get ready for Contacts 3.0 to sear your retinas.
In late 2017, Wear OS users reported via Google's issue tracker that Bluetooth call audio was thoroughly busted. Then, they waited... and waited. This has been going on for so long that Wear OS was still Android Wear when the issue was initially reported. At last, we're getting confirmation from users that the bug has been patched in Android 9 Pie. It only took Google 10 months.
Qualcomm doesn't make smartwatches (anymore), but it does make smartwatch chips. Almost all Wear OS devices for the last several years have run the aging Snapdragon Wear 2100. Rumors have swirled in recent months that Qualcomm would finally launch a modern successor, and September 10th might be the day.
I know what you're thinking. You're thinking, "My arms are just too short to take a totally rad selfie." Well, why not have a drone do it? The previously announced AirSelfie2 drone aircraft is available for purchase. Never again will you need to stretch your arm to the limit to get those Insta-likes.Let's be serious for a moment, if indeed you can be serious about a flying robot that takes selfies. This is an upgraded version of the original AirSelfie with a 12MP camera, and it supports 1080p video capture. It's about the size of a phone and has four rotors that keep it aloft for five minutes per charge.
Gmail changed how we use email forever the instant it appeared. The days of managing a measly 25MB inbox ended, and conversation view made it easier to follow long email chains. However, some people never got used to conversation view. Gmail will offer a reprieve on Android very soon with the option to disable this feature.
The race to 5G is on with every carrier promising big rollouts of next-generation networks in the coming year, but what about the phones? The first wave of consumer 5G devices are likely to be Wi-Fi hotspots, but Motorola thinks it has a way to offer the world's first 5G phone with the recently announced 5G Moto Mod. It's a strange device that will require certain compromises, but it's still probably better than the way we transitioned to 4G. Remember the Thunderbolt? Yeah, that's a low bar, but still.
Arlo Pro 2 cameras are still your best bet if you want a wireless security camera, but they don't come cheap. They're on sale today, and while that doesn't necessarily qualify as "cheap," they're a good deal. The three-cam set is within a few bucks of the 2-camera base model.All Arlo Pro 2 camera kits come with a base station that needs to be wired directly into your network and several cameras that connect to the hub. You can place the cameras anywhere within a couple of dozen feet. You can get up to six cameras with the kit, and then buy individuals to expand your network.
Today, the 3-camera kit is on sale for $449.99, which is just $5 more than the 2-cam. That's an appealing deal for $230 off. The 4-camera option is $621.48. That's around $60-70 less than usual. The 5-camera set is $792.97, a savings of roughly $100 off current pricing or more than $200 off if you go back to earlier this summer.All camera kits are in stock and sold by Amazon with Prime shipping.Source: Amazon
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Today is the big day—after months of beta builds and speculation, Android 9 Pie is rolling out to Pixels (and at least one other phone). You don't need to wait for the Pixel OTA, though. Google is ready to go with OTA files and full system images for the 2016 and 2017 Pixel devices.
Google has gone through several versions of location sharing over the years, all the way back to Google Latitude. That feature was inside Maps, but then location sharing moved to Google+. It came back to Maps last year, and an interesting new feature has rolled out. Now, sharing your location also shares your battery level.
I think I speak for most AP readers when I say that smartwatches haven't lived up to the hype. Samsung's Tizen watches have some good selling points. They tend to get better battery life, and the fitness tracking is great. You don't need a full smartwatch for that, though. The Gear Fit2 Pro might have everything you need, and it's on sale today for $69 off.