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Google is getting smart enough to decline Zoom calls if you aren't home
The update is ready on iOS, but it's slowly rolling out on Android
If you live in a home wired up with Google Assistant, and you also use Google Duo, you might be tired of getting alerts for calls on your Google Home smart speakers. If you have other people in your home, they're definitely tired of hearing those alerts when you aren't even there. Google's working on a fix for this: using presence detection, it can optionally only start ringing your smart speakers and displays when your phone is physically present.
PlayStation app gets back the wishlist it bizarrely lost
The wishlist returns, and you can also get notifications for when friends come online
The official PlayStation App on Android, an entryway into the PlayStation Network social hub and Sony's digital game store, isn't the most well-regarded by users. It's also somewhat limited, at least compared to the tools available sitting in front of your console or on a full desktop interface. But the latest update, now in the Play Store, adds in a much-loved feature that was missing from previous versions.
Take a whopping $250 off this Harman Kardon speaker with Google Assistant
eBay has this Wi-Fi speaker for just $94
We've featured the Harman Kardon Citation 100 a few times before on this site: it's a great smart speaker with an almost unbelievable price. At 0 (nearly four times the price of a comparable Nest Audio), even fans of the audiophile brand would be hard-pressed to justify the MSRP. Today's discount, down to just $94, isn't quite the cheapest we've ever seen. But it's still a fantastic deal for anyone in the market.
New Nvidia partnership could hint at Chromebooks with RTX graphics
Reference designs are being made with MediaTek for laptop manufacturers, including Chromebooks
Nvidia hasn't exactly set the world on fire with its Tegra line of Arm-based mobile processors. Outside of its own excellent SHIELD hardware (and notably the Nintendo Switch), it's basically dead. But the company is hoping to breathe new life into its Arm ambitions by doubling down on what it does best: graphics. In a press release, Nvidia announced that it's working with major chip supplier MediaTek to combine Arm-based architecture with its RTX line of graphics cards.
Amazon's new Echo Buds might actually be worth buying
They add ANC, wireless charging, and (wait for it) USB-C, with a price cut
Amazon introduced its self-branded true wireless earbuds, the Echo Buds, a year and a half ago. The big deal at the time was its direct integration with Alexa, but for the company's second go-round, they're piling on the extra features to make the headphones more competitive in a matured true wireless market. The new model is up for pre-order on Amazon today, delivered by May 13th. Physically, the redesigned Echo Buds are about 20% smaller and more rounded, now with Amazon's "smile" logo right on the outside in an only-slightly-conspicuous shade of black or white. The charging case has been redesigned: less like a tray and more like the case of the AirPods Pro. Said case has new wireless charging powers, at least if you shell out a few extra bucks for the upgrade. The charging case now uses USB-C for wired charging — the MicroUSB port was one of our biggest gripes with the original design.
In terms of sound quality, the major upgrade is active noise cancellation, still a premium feature in most headphone lines. This will be Amazon's first try at the tricky noise reduction technology, so we'll have to see how the second-gen Echo Buds with their enhanced triple microphones stack up to competitors like Apple and Sony.Of course the integrated Alexa voice control is back: when paired to the app on your phone, the Echo Buds can work more or less the same as Amazon's smart speakers. It's specifically designed for voice controls for music playback and Audible audiobooks, though the Buds include conventional touch controls as well.
Amazon claims 5 hours of battery life on a charge, with 2 extra full charges in the case for a combined total of 15. 15 minutes on a quick charge should give the Buds two hours of playback. The second-gen Echo Buds will retail for 9.99. That's $10 off the price of the originals, but you'll have to splurge $139.99 if you want the upgraded wireless charging case (which is not compatible with the older Buds).If you pre-order the Echo Buds you can take $20 off the price ($100/$120) and get six months of Amazon Music Unlimited for free. But don't be in too much of a hurry — Amazon's branded hardware goes on sale frequently, and we've got a Prime Day coming up.
Samsung's latest phone is a "Quantum" leap forward
No one seems to mention that a quantum leap is literally the smallest one you can possibly make
For about a week we've been seeing glimpses of a new, high-end variant in Samsung's Galaxy A series. This morning South Korean carrier SK Telecom made it official: the Galaxy Quantum2 is up for pre-order now. At the time of writing, the phone hasn't been announced for any other market, either under the "Quantum2" name or its alternative, leaked Galaxy A82 moniker.
OnePlus Health app gets new UI ahead of Watch launch
Plus a wider rollout — previously available only in India
The OnePlus Watch goes on sale tomorrow, though its early reviews are less than glowing. As mentioned in previous coverage, the Watch uses the OnePlus Health app to track steps, calories, sleep, and other various data. The Health app was previously available in India for the OnePlus Band, but in preparation for this launch, it's been given an update and rolled out internationally.
Nokia 2.2 updated to Android 11 as HMD continues its hot streak
Following the Nokia 8.1 and Nokia 2.3 earlier this month
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The Nokia 3.2 was blessed with an Android 11 update in March, and earlier this month, the previous flagship 8.1 and the budget 2.3 could join the party. Now the Nokia 2.2 is also in for the Android 11 update, as reported by TechMesto. The new firmware is rolling out to 24 countries, predominantly in Europe and Asia, while people living in other areas will still have to wait a while.
Get a pair of Sony XM3 earbuds for just $100 or XM4s for $200
WH-10000XM4 full headphones, WF-SP800N sport earbuds, or WF-1000XM3 ANC earbuds
Sony's really been upping its headphone game in the last few years, and now it makes some of the best-regarded sets on the market, in both full around-the-ear and true wireless bud style. Today no less than three of its most popular designs have dramatic discounts available, including the best-in-class WH-1000XM4 noise cancelling set. 
Let's start with that one, shall we? If you're okay with a refurbished set, the WH-1000XM4 is available on eBay for $199.99. That's an amazing $150 off the retail price. The XM4 design improves on the popular XM3 with better touch controls, multiple Bluetooth connections, and a speak-to-chat function that automatically turns on pass-through audio for a conversation.Buy: eBay
If you prefer your noise cancellation in a more portable form, check out another eBay deal, the WF-1000XM3. These are the earbud version of Sony's much-loved ANC cans, complete with the usual charging case. This set is also refurbished, and comes only in the gold-ish lighter color design. But it's being sold for just $99.99, a savings of $130 off the retail price.Buy: eBay
Lastly, Amazon is selling the WF-SP800N with a huge discount. These sportier, water-resistant buds (IP55 for sweat) have active noise cancellation, but not to the extreme degree of the other two sets. What you get instead is boosted bass and a long battery life, 9 hours before you have to return them to the case. They're on sale for just $98 for the baby blue version ($100 off the retail price!) or $118 for the black or red options. Unlike the other two sets, these buds are brand new, not refurbished.Buy: AmazonSupplies for all three headphones are not known, so get an order in quickly if you want them at these prices.
Play Movies & TV app will disappear from Roku and other smart TVs soon
Roku, LG, Samsung and Vizio TVs will lose the app in June, replaced with access to purchases YouTube
The transition from Google Play Music to YouTube Music has been a rocky and contentious one. But Google isn't finished axing its media apps just yet. According to updated support documentation, the Google Play Movies & TV app on smart televisions is the next one to get the chop. The phone app was replaced with the newer "Google TV" app in October, but the app will disappear from smart TV platforms as well starting in June.
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Samsung's mid-range Galaxy A series is deep and wide, much more so than the mainline S series. The latest A phone to break cover is the A82, also referred to as the "Quantum2" in its leaked materials. It's a sequel to the Galaxy A Quantum announced last summer, which was a variant of the excellent Galaxy A71. The leaked specifications describe, as implied by its model number, a phone on the high end of the mid-range.
Your WhatsApp account can be suspended by anyone who has your phone number
Researchers reveal gaping hole in the popular chat app's security
If you're a frequent user of WhatsApp, you may want to keep an eye on a disturbing hole discovered in its security this weekend. It's possible for an attacker to completely suspend your WhatsApp account, without any recourse for the individual user, and all they need is your phone number. At the time of writing there's no solution for this issue.
Microsoft just bought the company that built Siri's voice recognition for Apple
Microsoft purchased Nuance, makers of Dragon speech-to-text tools, for $16 billion
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Cortana, Microsoft's digital voice assistant named after that hologram lady from HALO, didn't exactly set the world on fire. Most Windows users I've seen treat it like an annoyance to be avoided, instead of an integral part of the system, as Google's Assistant and Apple's Siri have become. But based on its latest corporate purchase, Microsoft might be taking another stab at voice-powered interaction.
Act fast: Claim 3 free months of Stadia Pro, no purchase necessary
This runs out quickly whenever it's posted
If you've been meaning to try the pro tier of Google's streaming games platform, then you have some quick work to do to try it for free. Lenovo is offering anyone three months of Stadia Pro for free, if you sign up to its Legion Gaming community. You'll also have to jump through a few other hoops, but we've confirmed that it's working for new users in the US, at the very least.
Wireless earbuds are disgusting, but this adorable washing machine can fix that
Seriously, wash your ears tho
The human ear is a nasty place, and its unfortunate that we have to directly interact with it in order for headphones to work. Nowhere is this more obvious than in the design of true wireless earbuds, tiny, pristine bundles of incredible technology and engineering, which we must cram into our horrible head holes in order to properly use. Enter the Cardlax, the first washing machine designed exclusively for earbuds.
How long will your Logitech Harmony remote keep working?
Logitech's cancellation of the Harmony line means its customers are in a support limbo
A couple of days ago Logitech announced the end of its long-running Harmony universal remote line in a rather un-ceremonial forum post. The writing has been on the wall for a while; the last major Harmony release was almost two years ago, and that was an expensive dud. But it's still a blow to a community of dedicated hi-fi users who've loved these gadgets for almost 20 years.
Asus is updating the ZenFone 7 and 7 Pro to Android 11 around the world
The update had been in closed beta testing for six months
The Zenfone 7 is a unique device, bucking the trend of hole punch cameras with a flip-up rear camera module. A lack of timely updates remains a sore spot for Asus hardware (something that is decidedly not unique), but the company's flagship is now getting Android 11 after a long beta process. The update should be ready for all ZenFone 7 and ZenFone 7 Pro models now, no matter what territory they're being used in.
Samsung tries to lure iPhone users with a web-based demo of Android
"If you owned one of our phones, you'd be playing Fortnite right now!"
The very first time I ever used Android, it was loaded up as a live bootable partition on a MicroSD card shoved into my HTC Fuze. I'm sure the Windows Mobile installation on the phone's internal storage felt very jealous, because the rest is history. Samsung is hoping for something similar with its latest project: an interactive, web-based demonstration of Android made specifically for iPhone users.
Here's how to use the new Google Play Store interface that's arriving now
Say goodbye to the hamburger menu
If you take a look at the Google Play Store on your phone today, you may notice things have shifted around a bit. A new version of the interface has been appearing for a small number of users over the last week or so, but seems to rolling out more quickly now. This slight shift to the UI gets rid of the familiar hamburger menu (the three horizontal bars that used to be on the left of the search bar at the top), and instead has you tapping on your Google profile icon to get to more of the non-obvious elements of the Store.
Google I/O 2021 is officially next month — could the Pixel 5a and new Pixel Buds be in store?
The event was cancelled due to the pandemic last year
Google I/O is one of the high points of any Android fan's tech calendar. Last year the developer conference was scrubbed out of said schedule because of the COVID-19 pandemic, with too little warning to even organize an online replacement. This year it still isn't safe enough for an in-person conference, but Google is prepared enough for a virtual event.