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Galaxy Watch3 owners in Europe can now access blood pressure and ECG data
Samsung Health Monitor app approved by EU, other governments
More governments are giving their mark of approval to Samsung's ability to read and monitor your blood pressure and electrocardiogram. The company has announced that its Samsung Health Monitor app — where those tracking features can be found — will be available in 31 new countries.
Journey to the Savage Planet is coming to Stadia February 1, free for Pro subscribers
Y'all get to be Employees of the Month!
Another day and we've got more Stadia news! We have new details on the Free Play weekend for the all-new Madden NFL 21 plus three titles joining Stadia Pro next month and three other new games to the platform this week!
Samsung's next Lite tablet could have 5G and come in two sizes
If you're looking for specs, you won't find them here
Samsung usually releases two Tab S slabs in a year and we're inching toward what would historically be the time for a "Lite" release. While we don't have any spec points to discuss at the moment, it's been figured that a mid-range tablet or even two are on their way, including the first in the category to connect to 5G.
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra teardown suggests bigger is not always better for repairability
The culprits are a fussy display cable and some nasty adhesive on the battery
The Galaxy S21 got a thumbs-up in repairability with a recent teardown video. Will the S21 Ultra get similar or better marks? We've got another video from PBKreviews, the same channel that looked into the slab's smaller cohort, and the short answer is yes.
Visible offers up OnePlus 8 for $449 ($351 off)
It looks like you don't have to use the service to get the discount, but you can get an extra $450 value in gifts if you port your number over
Sometimes, the best deals you can get on a phone come from the carriers. It depends on the person's situation, but it's true. Verizon-owned Visible, though, has a pretty good deal on the OnePlus 8 whether you sign up for its service or not. Of course, there are strings attached to what you do with it afterwards.
Acer's new Chromebooks for education include spill-proof keyboards and antimicrobial coatings
Durability is top of mind this year
Schools will be spoiled for choice from Acer as they consider upgrading their Chromebook fleets this year. Five new models are coming into play with all of them certified to take a beating from kids and a splatter of bacteria. Plus, one of them being a Qualcomm LTE-connectable device.
FreedomPop's free wireless plan becomes less free, more bad
The most annoying change? No more auto-renewals
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One of the hidden gems in the MVNO sector was FreedomPop's free plan: for some people, 500 texts, 200 minutes, and 200MB of LTE (plus a pay-as-you-go overage rate of 2.5¢ per MB) goes far in a month. Recently, though, the company made sweeping changes to the so-called "freemium" plan by pushing Wi-Fi calling and messaging to the forefront and making drastic cuts to talk, text, and cellular data allowances. Worse yet is the sense of urgency put into place as those grandfathered into the old free plan have been told they will be kicked off of it after January 31. And the rabbit hole goes only deeper from there...
New icons let you see which apps are rising up and falling off the Play Store charts
Up two spots to third this week is FINNEAS
All ranks are fungible on a leaderboard and Google is making that axiom painfully apparent to developers, publishers and prospective users alike with a new rank change icon in its top app lists on the Play Store.
Trump administration issues one more middle finger to Huawei and its US suppliers
Reuters: $120 billion in US trade with Huawei held up
One of the President Donald Trump's choicest adversaries during his term has been China. He considers the country to be a trade scofflaw while politicians in intelligence circles have pegged it as a digital security threat. Huawei has been targeted to be the biggest casualty from multiple sanctions that have blocked it from acquiring American goods and services. Now, as the current administration makes way for another, we're learning of one of its final moves symbolizing a door slam.
Xiaomi responds to being blacklisted by the US government
Billions of dollars in funding could be at risk
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The Trump administration is dubbing Xiaomi a national security threat in a fashion similar to how it did Huawei and ZTE. However, the "Communist Chinese military company" label has a greater effect to this particular tech manufacturer than the others.
Snatch a SmartThings Cam right now for $20 ($50 off)
You've probably got an S21 pre-order set anyways, right?
The Samsung ecosystem spreads far and wide beyond the Galaxy S21 or smartwatches or even fridges. For example, the SmartThings Cam is a simple little indoor guard that does much of the things comparable security cameras in 2021 can do. But where else can you get one for $20?
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Don't you hate it when something you're looking forward to gets announced without a date and you're left waiting months without so much as a peep as to when it'll come? For the ten-year-old reboot of Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game on Stadia — well, maybe it shouldn't have taken this long — but it's finally time to welcome this classic back.
D-Link isn't just a Taiwanese consumer networking gear vendor: it makes smart home appliances, too. Turns out we've got a couple of new gadgets from the company this year: a moisture sensor and an outdoor pan & zoom security camera.
Pick up a couple of Eufy indoor security cameras for just $59 ($11 off)
Two for the price of... one-and-a-half, but it's still good
Need to pick up a security camera for your house or business? You can save a chunk of change by picking up two of them from Eufy on Amazon.Eufy's indoor security camera sits stationary and flat on a pedestal, shooting 1080p footage live for owners to view on Apple HomeKit or through Alexa and Google Assistant. AI movement and sound detection can also prompt notifications to your phone if something's going on. Plus, microphones and speakers let you get in touch back home no matter where you are. And all of this data can be stored to an SD card or in the cloud (at additional cost).
Get familiar with the Exynos 2100, the not-Snapdragon going into the Galaxy S21
It's all equal until the comparisons come out
Samsung has announced its top-tier integrated mobile chipset for 2021, the 5nm Exynos 2100. As has been the case for the past several years, the silicon is expected to appear in next-generation Galaxy flagship devices in certain regions where the Snapdragon 888 from Qualcomm won't be seen.
YouTube is pushing out a new page format to showcase content aligned with specific hashtags.
Qualcomm's new larger 3D Sonic Sensors touted to scan fingerprints 50% faster
And what we, the nerds, think of them will matter more than ever
Qualcomm is ploughing through with ultrasonic fingerprint-sensing technology as it introduces its second-generation 3D Sonic Sensor. The chip, set to go out into smartphones in the extreme near0future, features a reading surface that's 77% larger than the original and better processing that should result in 50% faster scans. However, something that hasn't been addressed here and has been challenged multiple times is the reliability factor.
Prolific television maker TCL has announced that it will be selling its first Google TV within the year. The set would be the first with the new UI and join a fleet of Roku TVs and low-end Android TVs in the portfolio.
Germaphobes can pay about $200 for a new touchless video doorbell (and doormat)
Take away the doorbell button, get a doormat instead?
We may be in the late stages of a global pandemic, but the audience for remote or touchless solutions to everyday routines will stick around after the endgame. So it goes that Alarm.com has announced one of the first consumer-facing touchless video doorbells.
Mobvoi now selling truly wireless Earbuds Gesture for $90 on Amazon
That's the first time I've heard of 'bobblehead controls'
An early sales campaign has wrapped up for boutique tech accessory maker Mobvoi and its wireless Earbuds Gesture — the new wearables are now widely available for purchase in the U.S. and Europe direct from the company or on Amazon starting at $90.The Bluetooth 5 earbuds were introduced in August with 6mm drivers, mic-enabled noise isolation, capacitive tap gestures and TicMotion full head gestures for control. They're good at dealing with sweat and rain up to IPX5 spec and are ready to talk to Alexa or Google Assistant. A full battery cycle runs for as long as 10 hours and the USB-C charging case is guaranteed to provide five extra cycles.Indiegogo backers were able to get the Earbuds Gesture for as low as $65 a pair. Now, though, you only have to pay $90, €90, or £80 and not have to wait as long for shipping.Buy: Mobvoi, Amazon