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A longstanding urban legend had it that the invention of the cell phone was inspired by communicators seen on Star Trek, the original series that premiered in 1966. That proved untrue, which is too bad — real 21st century mobile devices showing up as props in a Trek spinoff in 2022 would've felt like coming full circle. And indeed, that's just what we're getting now, as Star Trek: Picard uses another Samsung foldable smartphone as a futuristic prop — for the second week in a row.
Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold looks so futuristic, it scored a role on Star Trek: Picard
Our inner geeks are completely freaking out
Many of us at Android Police are total Star Trek fanboys, and we happen to — maybe you've noticed — geek out over Android phones. So when we spotted what looked like a Samsung foldable phone being used as a prop in the latest episode of Star Trek: Picard, our inner geeks started hyperventilating.
Paramount+ streaming plans get simpler and cheaper on June 7th
A new $5 tier will include commercials, but drop the live CBS feed
Paramount+, nee CBS All Access, is your one-stop shop for streaming shows like Star Trek, Nickelodeon, and all those cop shows your parents love to wait for on network TV. Though the service launched back in March, its plan options were a bit confusing. Starting next week, they'll be simpler, and at least one will be cheaper ... though you'll lose access to your local CBS station.
You can watch every episode of Star Trek ever for free for two months (Updated)
Jean-Luc Picard himself shared the news on Twitter
If you've run out of stuff to watch on Netflix while you're "working" from home, you're in luck. Patrick Stewart — real-life Picard — has announced that CBS All Access is offering a free month of service for anyone who signs up by April 23 and uses promo code GIFT.
I have a fascination with languages and accents, and even though I never watched Star Trek (ducks), I find the guttural spit-inducing pronunciation of Klingon ridiculously awesome. I wouldn't, however, ever think of learning it: 3.5 languages are nice enough for me now. But for those of you who are excited about learning a language that not many people can speak, there's a Duolingo course for that.
The TV landscape has shifted an enormous amount in the past decade. We've gone from requiring a TV subscription to watch almost any new show, to centralizing everything on services like Netflix, to every major TV network creating their own subscription service. CBS launched its 'All Access' site in 2014, allowing users to stream content the day after it airs, and the company is looking to expand it outside the United States.
Google's OnHub devices would like to change the way you look at and interact with routers. They are designed to be simple to use, attractive, and intelligent. That's nice, since most routers are fairly complicated for the technically challenged and their blinking lights and protruding antennas make them look like tiny, ugly, Romulan mining vessels (most people would think of this as a negative, but I'm not so sure about the AP crowd).If you've been interested in trying out an OnHub router for a while, but have been waiting for the right deal to pop up, then now is your time to flash some plastic and buy one. As part of their daily Gold Box promotion, Amazon has the Asus OnHub Wireless AC Router on sale today for just $130 – that's $70 off the MSRP, and $20 less than the last time we saw it go on sale.Not a bad deal, eh? If you want to pick one up then you'll need to act quick. The deal expires at the end of the day (or when Amazon runs out of inventory). There are no codes to fiddle with and the router ships free whether you are a Prime subscriber or not. Just follow the link if you are interested and you can buy for yourself. Happy interneting!
We covered the development of Disruptor Beam's Star Trek Timelines mobile game last year when they released a video intro hosted by none other than Q (John De Lancie). That game is finally available in the Play Store, and it's free. Well, free-ish. There are a boatload of in-app purchases, which is funny when you consider they don't even have money in the 24th century.
If you've been using Android for long enough, you might remember the days when the only swiping keyboard in existence was Swype, and you had to sign up for a weird private beta program to use it. Well, it's been in the Play Store for a few years now, and it's getting a big v2.0 update today. It's going where no man has gone before.
Star Trek fans who want to play video games based on their favorite franchise are constantly frustrated. Trek games are few and far between, and they seem to range from terrible (like the recent Faux Trek game for consoles from back in 2013), to promising but ultimately destroyed (like Star Trek Online), to blatant, lazy cash-grabs (like Star Trek Trexels). Is it really possible that there's a decent Star Trek game on the horizon? Signs point to "maybe."
In the latest version, Dropbox adds a much-needed favor for collaborative teams and users who rely on effective communication across updated files. But who gives a crap about that, because the app has also added GIF support.
Ever since the Motorola StarTAC, the loose association between cell phones and the original Star Trek TV series has been painfully obvious. If you want to show your love for America's most iconic piece of science fiction (back off, Star Wars nerds, don't make me bring up midichlorians), you'll soon be able to buy a screen-accurate and officially licensed version of the cell phone's spiritual progenitor. The Star Trek Communicator Bluetooth handset, Starfleet standard issue, will go on sale on January first.
Space: the final frontier. Wait, no, that's not right - there's no such thing as a "final" frontier, because there's nothing else, so it can't be a frontier to nothing. Let me start again.
Captain's log, stardate 45638.2. A scan of a long-lost pleasure cruise that exited Earth in the late twenty-first century has yielded some fascinating archaeological findings. In addition to a pair of primitive foot coverings that Commander Data identified as "Converse All-Stars," a complete and mint-condition collection of the classic mythological saga known as Animorphs, and a small, vibrating "Furby" that Mister Worf immediately eviscerated, we have discovered a piece of anachronistic human technology.
Star Command is one of my most-anticipated games for Android. Or at least it was, two years ago when it was scheduled to be released, and then again when it was released for iOS five months ago. An unreasonably long development cycle and some dodgy developer antics have made waiting for this game an exercise in frustration, and it's impossible to give it a full review without at least some bitterness hanging on in the back of my mind.
Remember that one Star Trek space battle scene? You know, the one where the captain is wiggling around in his chair while the camera shakes, and all the bridge officers are shouting things at him? "Hull breaches on decks five through eight!" "Reversing the shield polarity, sir!" "We're running low on self-sealing stem bolts!" You know.... every Star Trek space battle scene? Now there's an Android game that captures the feel of a space battle from the perspective of the shouting bridge crew. It's multiplayer. There are switches. And lots of shouting.
[Bonus Round] Artemis Spaceship Bridge Sim, Hero Forge Beta, Ninja Twins, And Lazy Raiders
Welcome to the latest entry in our Bonus Round series, wherein we tell you all about the new Android games of the day that we couldn't get to during our
Welcome to the latest entry in our Bonus Round series, wherein we tell you all about the new Android games of the day that we couldn't get to during our regular news rounds. Consider this a quick update for the dedicated gamers who can't wait for our bi-weekly roundups, and don't want to wade through a whole day's worth of news just to get their pixelated fix. Today we've got a hotly anticipated hardcore sci-fi spaceship simulator, an interesting take on the growing RPG-puzzle genre, a retro platform/puzzle game with a twist, and Namco's latest attempt at striking mobile gaming gold. Without further ado:
Google I/O is coming and it's time to get excited! It's like Christmas in June! It will be here in just a few short agonizing weeks - and we need to prepare. There is background information you need to know, rumors you should have in mind, and past announcements and acquisitions that need to be remembered. Google always leaves little news breadcrumbs for those that pay attention, and I pay attention. Fanatically.