Latest Articles
The Snapdragon 870 is nothing but a slightly tweaked 865 Plus
The new line could still prove to be significant going forward
Not too long ago, Qualcomm announced its latest flagship processor, the Snapdragon 888. Today, the company is back with another new mobile platform, the Snapdragon 870. While the name implies that we're looking at a brand-new line, the new chip is actually nothing but a slightly tweaked Snapdragon 865 Plus.
HP's 2021 education Chromebooks are easily disinfected and optimized for remote learning
Focusing on what matters most during the COVID-19 pandemic
Chromebook sales are surging thanks to the global pandemic that has many of us working and studying from home, so it's just fitting that HP has today announced its latest education-focused lineup of Chromebooks, just a few hours after Acer did. The new machines consist of offers for both teachers and students, and the company makes a point that all of them can be easily disinfected with household wipes.
Samsung Galaxy S21 teardown shows a surprisingly easy-to-repair interior
If only manufacturers could use less adhesive
Samsung just released the Galaxy S21 last week, and now, the first teardown video is already available for you to gaze at. It comes courtesy of YouTube channel PBKreviews and features a complete disassembly and reassembly of the regular S21, complete with the first repairability assessment. Spoiler alert: It looks like many parts could be pretty easily replaceable, except for the battery.
OnePlus Nord N10 updated to OxygenOS 10.5.9
Bringing optimized power consumption and the January security patch
OnePlus is diversifying its lineup with its budget-focused Nord series, currently comprised of the original Nord, the Nord N10, and the Nord N100. While we're still annoyed that the latter will only get Android 11 and nothing more, the Nord N10 has just received an update to OxygenOS 10.5.9.
Here's what every camera on the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra does
A different approach to zoom than the S20 Ultra
You may or may not consider the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra a huge upgrade over the S20 Ultra, but there's no denying that the company changed up the camera setup a bit. The most notable change is the replacement of the 48MP periscope zoom camera with a dual 10MP telephoto setup, promising up to 10x optical zoom. Other than these two, the specs remain the same on paper: There's a 108MP primary camera, a 12MP ultra-wide, and a 40MP selfie cam.
Swipe With Friends is like Tinder for finding movies and shows to watch
Or, you know, you could also just talk about what you want to watch
If you've ever tried to find the perfect movie or show to watch with your special someone at night, you know that it's sometimes more of a challenge than it should be — often you just end up scrolling through each other's watchlists and then settle for cable TV due to the lack of a decision. That's where somebody's genius idea comes in: What if there was an app for you and your partner where you swipe left and right on movies that are on your streaming services and when you match, it lets you know. It looks like a few people liked the idea so much they created a service just like that — their own takes on Tinder for movies and TV shows. The best of the bunch is Reelgood's Swipe With Friends.
Google says Pixel 4a 5G touchscreen issue will be fixed in February update
The problem popped up with the December security patch, but should be resolved soon
We've already heard that some Pixel 4a units started exhibiting touchscreen issues with Android 11, and it seems like a similar problem spread to the Pixel 4a 5G following the December security patch. Many owners have taken to the Google support forum, the Google IssueTracker, and the XDA Developers Forum to complain about the problem, and Google says a fix is on the way.
Samsung made the Galaxy S21 lineup official yesterday, including the new S21 Ultra with S Pen support and a less outrageous (but still prohibitively high) price tag. But how does this new phone compare to its direct predecessor, the first Ultra in the S series? There are some notable upgrades paired with a collection of regressions, which makes the case for the S21 Ultra less than clear.
The Samsung Galaxy SmartTag helps you find your misplaced keys, wallet, and more
It only fully functions with Galaxy smartphones or tablets
Samsung hasn't only announced the S21 series and the Galaxy Buds Pro at Unpacked today, it also took the time to introduce the Galaxy SmartTag. It's a concept that should feel familiar if you've ever heard of Tile. Like the products from the hugely successful competitor, the Galaxy SmartTag will help you find misplaced items via Bluetooth Low Energy. It also has a button that lets you activate a pre-defined smart home routine. It's controlled via the new SmartThings Find service.
Parents can now share Spotify Kids playlists
Meanwhile, children under 13 still can't even use YouTube Music at all
While Google shunned kids from using its music streaming service when it sunset Play Music, Spotify only recently launched a dedicated app for children, Spotify Kids. The application only consists of hand-picked, child-friendly audio content and comes with a more playful UI. Now Spotify has announced that it's adding support for shared playlists, allowing parents to share their favorite music with their kids.
Dell just announced the first LTE Chromebook in ages
It's aimed at the education market and unfortunately looking the part
The demand for Chromebooks has skyrocketed over the last year thanks to the global pandemic with so many people working and studying from home. Unfortunately, not everyone has the privilege to rely on a stable Wi-Fi connection, which can be catastrophic for kids in remote learning environments. That's where Dell wants to come in with its new Chromebook 3100, its first education-focused Chrome OS machine to come with an optional mobile network connection.
Samsung teases the S21 in new video like you haven’t already seen everything about the phone
The video footage is in line with the leaks
It's no secret that Samsung will hold its Unpacked event this Thursday, January 14, and it's all but certain that we'll see the Galaxy S21 lineup — the upcoming flagship series has already leaked substantially. But Samsung still wants to drum up some excitement around the devices. The company has just dropped a trailer for the event, saying that "You don't want to miss this."
TCL 20 Series launches with an affordable 5G phone and an even cheaper 4G handset
5G is starting to arrive in budget devices
TCL might have made a name for itself because of its affordable TVs, but the brand has long entered the smartphone market, most recently releasing its first Verizon 5G phone, the TCL 10 5G UW. For CES this year, the company is back with a new, even more affordable phone lineup consisting of the sub-$400 TCL 20 5G and the TCL 20 SE.
Google offers a silly solution for multilingual Android Auto users: Stick to one language
For some people, the Assistant has been reading notifications in the wrong language for months
Google may offer quite some options for multilingual users, but there are still many hurdles when using the Assistant, Gboard, and other Google apps in two or more languages. Over the last year and a half or so, the problems have also moved over to Android Auto. Bilingual users have been reporting that the Assistant reads notifications in the wrong language, resulting in word soup and unintelligible sounds. After months of working on resolving the problem, Google has finally found a, uhm, let's call it solution: Just remove your secondary language from the Assistant.
Google Calendar finally moved its search button to the top bar
It previously lived in the hamburger menu
Searching your events in Google Calendar can be a tedious experience, and many people might not even remember that's an option in the Android app at all. That's likely because the search button is hidden in the hamburger menu below the different view options. It looks like Google has recognized that this position doesn't make a lot of sense, as the company is rolling out a small UI tweak that moves the search button to the top app bar.
These are the best replacements for Play Music's upload library
Spoiler alert: None of them replicate Play Music's feature set 1:1
Read update
Google killed Play Music in October 2020, a service many people loved for one feature in particular: its online music file locker with uploaded songs that seamlessly integrated with Play Music's streaming catalog. You could also just add titles you own and listen to them without ever having to pay a dime. Luckily, there are a few alternatives that replicate some of Play Music's capabilities, including its successor YouTube Music.
Archos made a rugged 5G phone with a monstrous 8,000mAh battery
Tough on the outside, sleek on the inside
Rugged electronics are usually built with only one thing in mind: an exterior that can withstand extreme pressure and violent conditions. While these devices often cut corners when it comes to the interior, that doesn't seem to be the case for the Archos X67 5G that was released just today. It hides a massive 8000mAh battery and the mid-range Mediatek chip Dimensity 800 in its rugged exterior.
Google Phone could soon record all calls from unknown numbers
A toggle will let you turn this option on
The Google Phone app that comes preinstalled on Pixels and some other smartphones is a true boon for people constantly bothered by robocalls as it's capable of blocking them automatically. But the company has expanded its calling app with other features as well: It recently added call recording, rolling out to select phones and regions since the beginning of 2020. It looks like the developers are now working on automatic recordings if you receive calls from unknown numbers not in your contacts.
Linking devices to Google Home and finding the correct app will soon be easier
Smart suggestions and deep linking make for a less convoluted setup process
Setting up new smart home devices is always a hassle, which you might have noticed following the holidays and presents under the tree. You have to look through a list of Assistant actions during setup and select the appropriate one, which is just one part of the multi-step pairing process. Google is looking to make this step easier with the introduction of suggestion chips for new device's actions on your network, but smart home app developers will have to do their part to enable this.
Google is working on bringing COVID-19 contact tracing to smartwatches
For those who don't always have smartphones on them
Wear OS may feel dead in the water and might only be receiving a minimum of feature additions, but it remains a widely used platform nonetheless. And it looks like the company isn't completely done with wearables. Following the Bluetooth SIG decision to expand the standard's specifications to enable contact tracing on Bluetooth Low Energy devices like wearables, Google already appears to be working on adding COVID-19 exposure tracing to its platform.