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Should you buy a Wear OS watch or a Galaxy Watch?
Android smartwatch choices are pretty slim, but these are the two biggest contenders
These days, there are two primary options for Android-compatible smartwatches. You can use a watch powered by Google's own Wear OS software, or pick up a Galaxy Watch from Samsung. Both platforms get most of the basics right, but depending on which features you care about the most, one might be better than the other for you.In this guide, we'll go over the key differences between both platforms, so you can make an informed smartwatch purchase.
The third-generation Moto 360 was released at the end of last year, notably developed by eBuyNow and not Motorola. It was a good-looking watch that generally worked well, but the original $350 asking price was ridiculous. Now the Moto 360 is available for just $179.99, almost $100 cheaper than the Fossil Gen 5 currently costs.The new Moto 360 is equipped with a Snapdragon Wear 3100 chipset, a 1.2-inch fully-circular AMOLED screen, 8GB of internal storage, 1GB of RAM, 3ATM water/dust resistance, built-in GPS, and NFC for contactless payments. It functions almost identically to the Fossil Gen 5, except that you don't get the proprietary software features that Fossil has developed, like enhanced fitness tracking and custom battery modes.
Just last week, Chrome 85 rolled out to the stable branch across desktop and mobile platforms, with a heap of interface changes and new developer features. Chrome 86 has now graduated to the Beta Channel, and it mostly focuses on new capabilities for web developers. Let's jump right in!
Mozilla promises expanded extensions support following controversial Firefox Android update
The newest Firefox updated removed all but a small selection of add-ons
Read update
Mozilla has been working on a rewritten version of Firefox for Android, designed to be faster and easier to maintain, and it started rolling out to the stable channel last week. Even though the new version is absolutely an upgrade in some areas, replacing the older browser before the newer codebase had all the same features has proven to be an unpopular move.
APKMirror Installer now available on the Android TV Play Store
It's now much easier to sideload apps on Android TV
The introduction of app bundles has made sideloading Android applications a bit more difficult. That's why APKMirror, sister site of Android Police, released an installer application earlier this year alongside support for app bundles on the website. APKMirror Installer has continued to receive new improvements since then, and now it's officially supported on Android TV.
Facebook Messenger follows WhatsApp, adds limit on forwarding texts
The feature is designed to limit the spread of fake news
Several messaging platforms allow you to forward a text to multiple groups at once, which can come in handy for many situations, but has also led to fake news spreading like wildfire. That's why Facebook-owned WhatsApp started limiting message forwarding to five groups earlier this year, and now the company is doing the same for its own Messenger service.
Asus revealed the Zenfone 7 and 7 Pro last month, following months of rumors and speculation. If you don't plan on sticking with the stock ROM, Asus has now released the bootloader unlock tool for both phones, as well as kernel source code packages for developers to try out.
The Amazon Echo Plus is down to $75 ($75 off) and comes with a free Philips Hue bulb
A speaker with a built-in Zigbee hub
In addition to the regular Echo smart speaker, Amazon sells an upgraded model called the Echo Plus. It offers improved sound and a built-in Zigbee hub for select smart home devices, and now you can get it for just $74.99. That's 50% off the usual price of $149.99. Plus, Amazon is throwing in a free Philips Hue smart bulb to sweeten the pot.Amazon's Echo Plus does all the things you'd expect an Alexa speaker to do, like control smart home devices, stream music, call other speakers (or people with the Alexa app installed), use third-party skills, and more. Compared to the regular Echo speaker, the Plus has improved audio quality and a built-in Zigbee hub for directly connecting to some smart home devices. While most smart home products use a standard Wi-Fi connection these days, the Zigbee hub still comes in handy for Sylvania and Hue bulbs, Yale locks, and more.
Google Trends introduces portal for tracking US election search topics
See which candidates and issues are Googled the most
For better or worse, search engines are how most people research information, so Google has been one of the primary ways people are informing themselves ahead of the United States presidential election. Google Trends already allows anyone to see what the most popular web searches are at any given time, but now Trends has introduced a page specifically for queries related to the election.
The OnePlus 7T is back down to $400 at B&H, today only
It's the T-Mobile version, but you can unlock the bootloader for better carrier compatibility
Last month, T-Mobile was selling its version of the OnePlus 7T for just $399, but you had to be a T-Mobile customer (or request an unlock after purchase). Now you can buy the same phone from B&H Photo for the same price, but it's already carrier-unlocked.
Aukey produces countless charging accessories, most of which work well and are priced competitively. Now you can get one of the company's wall adapters with two USB ports (one Type-A, one Type-C) for just $14.70. That's a discount of $20.29 over the usual price.This wall adapter has a 46W USB Type-C port, so it can quickly charge anything that supports USB Power Delivery. That includes flagship Samsung Galaxy phones (mid-range and lower-end models usually only work with Qualcomm QuickCharge, if that), Google Pixels, Nintendo Switches, and most ultrabooks. There's also a 10.5W USB Type-A connector for plugging in older/less-powerful devices.
The Google (Nest?) Home Max is Google's largest smart speaker, giving you the same functionality as any other Assistant speaker matched with fantastic sound quality. It was first priced at $400, but more recently has gone for $300, and now you can buy one for just $199.
It's been almost a year since Microsoft first teased the Surface Duo, and our review unit just showed up last week. While we can't talk about the software experience quite yet, we can answer one question we have received from several readers: how does the hinge feel?
OnePlus Buds gray color option finally available in the US
The new truly-wireless earbuds now come in two colors
OnePlus released its first truly-wireless earbuds back in July, and they earned an 8.5/10 in our review for offering good sound quality and a robust (if not entirely original) design. The buds were originally only available in white, not counting the limited edition blue-and-yellow color scheme, but now you can also buy them in gray.
AT&T/WarnerMedia's latest streaming service, HBO Max, was released to the general public on May 27th. While it does have a large library of shows and movies, it has been criticized for its lack of features, most notably the ability to skip show intro scenes — something Netflix added in 2018. It took a few months, but HBO Max has finally fixed that issue.
Moto Razr 5G will likely have a familiar similar design and a Snapdragon 765G
Same chipset as the OnePlus Nord and Pixel 5
The Moto Razr seems to have quickly fallen out of the public consciousness, partially because there are more important events happening right now than ultra-premium phone releases, and partially because the Galaxy Z Flip and Z Fold2 have received more attention lately. Much like Samsung did with the Z Flip, Motorola is now prepping a minor upgrade for the Razr with 5G support in tow.
The Galaxy Note20 Ultra is undeniably an excellent phone, but like almost any product, there's still plenty of room for improvement; namely, the price is sky-high, its size poses usability issues, and we have some more subjective input we'd provide about features and design that would just make it a better phone in our eyes. At $1300, Samsung should be throwing in everything and the kitchen sink, so consider this our "kitchen sink" Galaxy Note20 Ultra wish list.
Unboxing the Surface Duo: What's Microsoft's $1400 dual-screen phone like in person?
There's no doubt, this is something special
It's been almost a year since Microsoft first teased the Surface Duo, and we've been waiting to get our hands on one ever since. Our review unit arrived a few days ago, and given the excitement around it, we thought we would show you what it looks like in person ahead of our full review. While the unboxing isn't exactly anything groundbreaking, just holding the Duo in your hands makes you realize Microsoft's built something special here, something legitimately new and different. In other words: the Surface Duo is really cool.
I can't believe how thin Microsoft made the Surface Duo
Microsoft found a way to make a dual-screen phone that isn't bulky
Microsoft finally put the Surface Duo up for pre-order earlier this month, following a year of teases, leaks, and rumors. I received my Duo review unit earlier this week, and while I'm still getting a feel for what it's like to use, one aspect of the device has stuck out to me more than anything else: how thin it is.
Samsung's new smartwatch on the block is the Galaxy Watch3, featuring the company's latest hardware and software packed into a traditional-looking watch. However, at a starting price of $400 (with configurations that make it almost $500), it's not an impulse purchase. There's also the competition to consider, namely the Fossil Gen 5.The Fossil Gen 5 is the flagship smartwatch for Google's Wear OS platform right now. Thanks to its Snapdragon Wear 3100 processor and 1GB RAM, it's faster (and less buggy) than most other Wear OS watches, and it's also significantly cheaper than the Galaxy Watch3. In this guide, we'll help you figure out which timepiece is the best choice for you.