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OnePlus CEO confirms the company's first smartwatch is coming early next year
Luckily there's not really a flagship Android smartwatch to kill yet
OnePlus has released plenty of phones over the years, but one product it has never tried to revolutionize (yet) is the smartwatch. We thought that might change when a listing for the OnePlus Watch was spotted this past summer, but then things got delayed and the status of the watch was unknown. We now know that it's coming — and we won't have long to wait.
This $700 4K Android TV from Hisense is almost as big as Michael Jordan ($300 off)
It's definitely not as good at shooting baskets, though
Mounting former pro basketball player Michael Jordan in your living room doesn't seem like a great idea, but mounting a 4K Android TV on the wall that's about the same size as Michael Jordan sounds a lot better. Right now, there's a 75" set from Hisense that's on sale at Best Buy for just $699.99 — a full $300 in savings.
Proton VPN brings its privacy protection services to Android TV devices
More apps for Android TV are always appreciated
VPNs seem to be the hot thing now as people put more focus on their privacy. Google introduced a VPN for Google One members earlier this year, but it was targeted at phones and tablets. Now Android TV users are getting a new VPN option for their large screen devices thanks to an update to Proton VPN that expands compatibility to ATVs.
Google's alleged monopoly may be safe until 2023 as judge suggests dates for a potential trial
Latest antitrust lawsuit accuses Google of building an 'impenetrable moat around its kingdom'
Google has gotten bigger over the years, and that increased market share has come at the cost of increased scrutiny. The Department of Justice filed a massive antitrust lawsuit against the company in October, and last month we learned that more might be on the way. Those predictions have now come to pass, as a collection of nearly 40 states has filed a new suit against Google accusing it of "building an impenetrable moat around its kingdom." But it may be a while before this litigious jousting match goes to trial.
Hire a robot housekeeper that vacuums and mops for just $170 ($80 off)
Efficient, but it's not much of a conversationalist
The holidays may be a bit different this year, but that doesn't mean the festivities will be any less messy. Prepare yourself ahead of time by picking up an Ecovacs Deebot 661 robotic vacuum and mop combo. It's got anti-collision sensors, long battery life, and a price tag that's dropped down to $170 at Amazon — savings of approximately $80.This unit packs in plenty of suction thanks to a max power mode that boosts pickup power by up to 2x. It works with voice assistants like Alexa and Google Assistant for quick verbal commands, and you can utilize the Ecovacs app to do things like schedule work times and change cleaning modes. Thanks to a battery life that lasts up to 110 minutes, the Deebot 661 can get plenty of tidying done before it automatically returns to its charging station.
YouTube Music swaps album list layout for a more glanceable grid in latest UI tweak
Plus related playlists are showing up in a new place
It's been a big year for YouTube Music. The platform picked up plenty of new features and became Google's sole music streaming service when Google Play Music started shutting down a few months back. Now a couple more tweaks have been spotted in testing, including one that switches an artist's album view section from a list to a grid layout.
Take home an Alexa-compatible Citizen Echo wall clock for just $45 ($35 off)
A simple, smart, and stylish way to keep track of all those timers you set
Smart speakers and smart displays are great, but what about smart wall clocks? They're a thing, too, and right now, you can get a Citizen Echo smart wall clock that works with Alexa for just $44.70 on Amazon — a savings of $35.29 off the normal price.This Citizen Echo clock pairs with a compatible Alexa device via Bluetooth to provide a visual reference point for timers. It has 60 LED markers along the clock face to give you an easy to read countdown. Timers set on the paired Alexa device will display on the clock automatically, even if you set multiple timers at once. Along with this smart functionality, it's also a traditional wall piece in its own right, with a stylish modern design and protective glass to keep the hands of the clock safe from harm.
Video hands-on puts the unreleased Galaxy S21+ camera up against the iPhone 12 Pro Max
This may be our best look yet at the S21+
It may still be 2020 for another week or two, but the fever for Samsung's 2021 lineup has officially started. We've seen a number of leaked renders and promotional videos, but now a new video may just be our best look yet at the upcoming Galaxy S21+ — and it includes a camera comparison with Apple's iPhone 12 Pro Max flagship.
Samsung's upcoming Galaxy S21 series is looking pretty nice based on the variety of leaked images, renders, and videos we've seen so far. Now a leak of a different sort has been released online, providing a glimpse at what we might expect to pay for Samsung's latest flagship lineup — and the news is both good and bad.
The idea of Photoshop on a phone-sized screen may sound a little funny, but Adobe's Photoshop Camera still does its best to bring pro-level AI-powered features to the masses on their mobile devices. The app exited its beta testing period earlier this year, and now it's adding support for a key feature that should make it much nicer to use at night — that's right, dark mode has arrived.
OnePlus puts Canvas AOD in the Play Store for faster updates in the future
Now that the company has implemented an AOD, it's time to keep improving it
After years of waiting, OnePlus finally introduced an always-on display this year along with Oxygen OS's Android 11 update. It started arriving for the OnePlus 8 family via a beta OTA update back in September, and now the manufacturer has put the Canvas AOD app onto the Play Store to make it easier to quickly add improvements with future updates.
Get an August Smart Lock plus Lenovo's Smart Clock Essential for just $250 ($80 off)
Lock it and clock it
Misplacing your house keys is always a scary thing. One way to avoid going through that experience is by upgrading to a smart lock. Right now, Best Buy has an August smart lock and keypad combo on sale for just $249.99 — and it'll throw a free Smart Clock Essential from Lenovo into the deal for a combined savings of $80.
Fire TV update lets you quickly check your security camera feed without pausing the show
Watch people invade your home while watching Home Invaders
Amazon just started sending out a big home screen redesign to Fire TV devices, but that's not all the new stuff that's coming. Owners of the second-gen Fire TV Cube, 2020 4K Toshiba Fire TV, and 2020 4K Insignia Fire TV will soon be able to view their security camera feeds in picture-in-picture mode without interrupting the content currently playing.
PhotoRoom automatically removes the background from your pics
Great for taking product photos or just snapping artsy selfies for the 'gram
Everybody wants to take beautiful photos, but not many of us can make it out to a full-blown photography studio these days. That's where PhotoRoom comes in — it's an app that automatically removes photo backgrounds, making it easy to create professional headshots, product pics, and more. And now it's available for the first time on Android.
Leaked Galaxy S21 renders show off Samsung's 2021 color palette
These are some good looking shades, Samsung
Read update
The debut of Samsung's new Galaxy S21 series is rapidly approaching. We've received a few early looks at the device's design in the past month or so, and even gotten our hands on some official teaser videos. Now Samsung's marketing renders of the S21 have found their way online, showing off the device in all of its colors — and there's also some peeks at the upgraded S21+ and S21 Ultra.
The EU will allow Google to acquire Fitbit, but it's laying out some conditions
The deal still requires approval in the US
It's been over a year since Google announced a $2.1 billion dollar deal to take over Fitbit, but it's been sitting in regulatory purgatory since then while the European Commission investigated the acquisition's affect on consumers and competitors. Now it looks like the EU has come to a conclusion that will allow the merger to move forward — providing that Google adheres to a set of specific guidelines about data privacy.
Google shares the shutdown timeline for Android Things
Winding down Android Things is such a Google thing to do
Google launched Android Things back in 2016 as a simple operating system for use on a variety of smart appliances. It never actually found its way onto any Google hardware products, though, and last year the company announced it was narrowing its focus to smart speakers and displays. Now Android Things OS is hitting another obstacle on its way out the door, as non-commercial use starts being cut early next year.
Samsung claims reports of the Note's death have been greatly exaggerated
But next year's Note may not be as special as it once was
Samsung's Galaxy Note series offers some of the most expensive phones around, but 2020 hasn't been super kind to the high-end smartphone market. Earlier this month, rumors started swirling that Samsung was considering crumpling up its Note line in favor of focusing on foldables. Now the company is rebuking the rumor mill, claiming that the Note's retirement is not in our immediate future.
Samsung Messages starts adding support for Google RCS Chat
This means it will work regardless of how your carrier feels about RCS
Google's history with messaging is a long and winding road, but the company finally started making some more serious progress last year when it began rolling out RCS-powered chat features that didn't require carrier approval. Since then, Google has made RCS available worldwide through the Google Messages app. Now it looks like Samsung is starting to bring support for Google's chat features to its own Samsung Messages app.
Anker charging products start at just $12.59 in Amazon's Deal of the Day
A phone without a charging cable is like a boat without an anchor
Chargers are some of the most essential accessories you can spend money on, and right now, Amazon is offering some great deals on power products from Anker. Everything from car chargers to power banks is on sale, with options starting at just $12.59 — up to 41% off normal prices.For the low price of $12.59, you can get yourself a car charger with dual ports that pumps out up to 30W of juice at once — enough to provide speedy charging for the driver and their passenger. If you're on the go, but not in a car, Anker's PowerPort Cube power strip provides 3 outlets and 3 USB ports and extends up to 8 feet away from the plugin. And there's plenty of other accessories, too, like USC-C to lightning cables, portable power packs, and a wall charger with enough oomph to power two full-size laptops at once.