Latest Articles
No, it's not an April Fool prank, as far as we're aware. Sprint and Verizon are taking pre-orders for the LG G5 starting today, and it will be officially available on April 1st. You have your choice of monthly payments, a contract, or just buying it outright for $576 on Sprint. Verizon only has payment plans, and the full price phone is a little more expensive.
It's update Wednesday, so Google is going to be pushing out some new versions of its apps. What about the other stuff in the Play Store, though? Well, some of that is on sale. If you're ready to get some new stuff and save some cash, read on.
Read update
Remember when the Nexus 5X came out and everyone thought it was just a little too expensive? Well, you can't say that anymore. This phone is getting so cheap it's crazy not to buy one if you need a new device (or maybe even a spare). The latest deal on eBay has the 32GB Nexus 5X selling for $249.99. Note: this appears to be the international version of the phone. Mind the LTE bands.
Google Photos already has some "smart" features that try to make your photos easier to manage, and today it's getting another one. Google is rolling out "smarter albums" to the app. From now on, when you take pictures while on a trip or attending an event, Google Photos will automatically assemble your best shots into albums for easy sharing.
Read update
- Sprint too. No fees through March 31st, and it applies to Virgin and Boost as well.
Most mobile plans these days let you call just anywhere in your home country without incurring extra fees, and a few even have some international calling included. Phoning Europe from the US is usually spendy, though. For the next few days, a couple carriers have waved all fees associated with calls or texts from the US to Belgium in the wake of Tuesday's terrorist attacks.
You've probably heard of ES File Explorer before, even if you've never personally used it. The original developer of that app seems to have resurfaced on XDA with an alpha app that you might want to check out. fooView runs a small floating button that you can use to get around the phone, take screenshots, and perform searches in a snap. Well, in a swipe, I guess.
Welcome to your kingdom, my lord. It's the year 915, and foreigners are raiding our shores. It's a real problem. At any rate, the kingdom is now under your control and there are matters that require your attention. By the way, do you have any money? We could use some. Only with your cunning, commitment, and cold hard cash can we make this kingdom great again.
Read update
- Google's documentation for Android N does mention freeform mode, saying that makers of larger devices can enable it, which suggests Google's intention is to have freeform available for Android N. It still seems like it has a long way to go, though.
Android N is finally making multi-window mode a reality on Android, but the included features are somewhat limited. There's support for split-screen apps, but what about true resizable windows a la Remix OS? That's possible too, but this feature seems much more rough around the edges. It also takes a little monkeying around to enable.
AT&T Has The LG Watch Urbane 2 LTE Available For Pre-Order Again At $359.99 Or $199.99 With Contract
Things did not go as planned for LG with the Watch Urbane 2nd Edition, which was originally supposed to come out late last year. A hardware defect caused the company to halt the release and bring the watch back to the drawing board. Now, it's ready to go again and AT&T will let you pre-order one right now.
If having extreme battery life is more important to you than having a phone that fits comfortably in your pocket, Mophie has you covered. It produces extended battery cases for phones that make them monstrously huge, and the G4 Juice Pack is on sale for $10 in AT&T stores. That's down from $100.
T-Mobile likes to talk up Binge On whenever it adds new partners, as it did the other day with the addition of YouTube. One thing Legere and company neglected to mention is that Binge On now has its first adult partner. I don't mean "adult" like paying bills and other boring grown up responsibilities; I mean porn. Binge On now includes unmetered porn streaming via MiKandi.
The system UI in Android has, for the most part, been sacrosanct. Apps can't just add new elements to the OS, but Android N looks to be loosening up that restriction a bit. We already posted about the ability to add Quick Settings tiles natively, and now it looks like Google is allowing developers to insert an app settings link in app info.
Lenovo completed its acquisition of Motorola at the end of 2014, but Moto's leadership has remained intact since then. That changes today with the announcement that Motorola president Rick Osterloh is leaving the company. In his place will be Xudong Chen and Aymar de Lencquesaing acting as co-presidents of Lenovo's Mobile Business Group.
Google's OnHub router offers an easy setup process and cool app management, but it's still working on getting all the features people expect from a $200 router. For example, the USB port still doesn't do anything. There's a new update rolling out, and while it does not address the USB port situation, it does make tracking your speeds and getting devices on the right band easier.
Everyone's favorite limbless hero is back, but not in the way you might expect. While Rayman has been relegated to the modern micro-transaction gaming wastelands, he comes from a proud tradition of classic platforming. Now you can relive the glory days with Rayman Classic on Android. It's $5, but that's the end of it.
Read update
We knew Google was going to be pushing out OTA updates to the Android N developer preview this year, but I don't think anyone was expecting it to happen quite so fast. The first update is rolling out to devices now, and factory images have been updated for those of you planning to do it the old fashioned way.
Google has released a new app in the Play Store, but before you get too excited, it's not technically a new app. It's just new to the store. It's the Android TV Backdrop Daydream app. If you've got an Android TV device, it already has this app installed, but now that it's in the Play Store you should get automatic updates.
One of the loudest voices of criticism when T-Mobile launched Binge On was none other than Google, but it would appear the two companies have patched things up. T-Mobile just announced a big expansion of Binge On support, and among the new options are both YouTube and Google Play Movies.
Nextbit launched its Kickstarter last year with just a GSM version of the Robin, but the people demanded a CDMA one too. The company attempted to accommodate them, but now CEO Tom Moss has announced that the CDMA Robin will never exist.
Google introduced factory reset protection in Android 5.1 to prevent a stolen device from being used. When FRP is active, you're supposed to be required to log in with an account that was previously on the device, but RootJunky has made it his mission to find workarounds for FRP. In fact, he found a fantastically complicated one for the Android N developer preview.