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Sony announced the Xperia 5 III way back in April of 2021. It didn't launch for months, and when it did, the US wasn't on the list. That changes today. You can purchase Sony's latest small-ish flagship phone for $999.99, which is a lot for a phone with last year's hardware. Sony is sweetening the deal with some earbuds and a mountain of CoD points.
Material You is one a centerpiece of Android 12 on the Pixel phones, and that makes your choice of wallpaper more important than ever. Google offers a wide selection of backgrounds on Pixel phones, and the options have expanded today. Pixel owners will find three new images, courtesy of Daren Thomas Magee of Real Fun Wow.
The best of CES 2022: AP's favorite products from the show
It wasn't well attended, but it was full of great tech
CES 2022 has just wrapped up in Las Vegas, and even with the show closing one day early due to COVID-19, there were a plethora of new gadgets on display. But let's be honest: most of the products at these shows turn out to be bad. At the same time, there are some real gems. Here are the coolest products we've seen come out of CES 2022.
Many of us dismissed emoji as a fad when they started to appear a few years back, but here we are in 2022 and emoji are increasingly the only way I want to communicate with people. Why say, "yes, I'll look at that" when you can just send a goofy picture of eyes? Your emoji communication will be leveling up in Chrome 98, featuring crisper lines and smaller files sizes. You can check them out today in the new beta.
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There was a time not that long ago that OnePlus phones were a guaranteed excellent value. That's no longer the case as the company has increasingly focused on flagship devices and carrier partnerships, pushing the cost of some devices over $1,000. OnePlus usually releases a T-series phone in the fall, but we didn't get one of those last cycle, probably thanks to the chip shortage. That puts the OP9 in a strange place of being the standard-bearer for the company after almost a year.
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AT&T works with all the major smartphone OEMs like Samsung, Apple, and even Google, but there are some jobs that call for a carrier-branded budget phone. Jobs, apparently, like getting millimeter wave 5G into your hands for two benjamins. Say hello to the AT&T Fusion 5G.
Google's bringing your Android-powered car more apps, voice controls, and UWB car keys
As long as you've got a compatible vehicle
Some big changes are coming to Google in your car. The search giant has announced a plethora of new features for both Android Auto and built-in Android Automotive systems. Most of the new features are rolling out in the spring or summer, but you can look forward to more apps, new Assistant integrations, and what appears to be the first Google-blessed wireless Android Auto adapter. However, some of these features will require specific (and expensive) car models.
The 2022 version of Motorola's G Stylus is not a complete unknown at this point. Some OnLeaks renders from last month offered a good idea of the phone's design, but a new leak purports to show off a few of the specs. We also get a few presumably official renders of the device.
TCL's newest Android phones will arrive at T-Mobile and Verizon this month and quickly be forgotten
Plus tablets, AR glasses, and more
CES 2022 isn't going quite as we'd hoped, but even if the on-site events have been curtailed, there are still plenty of announcements. TCL rolled out the 20 Series last summer (including the TCL 20 Pro 5G), and now it's moving on to the 30 Series. It's starting with a pair of phones that will launch on Verizon and T-Mobile this month. Later, the 30 Series lineup will expand considerably.
Microsoft Surface Duo 2 review: Do not pay $1,500 for this
Even on sale, it's only for Microsoft acolytes
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Microsoft has tried almost everything to get a foothold in mobile, and its current strategy focuses on the Surface Duo 2. This dual-screen smartphone doesn't change the fundamentals of the original—it opens like a laptop, revealing two identical 5.8-inch screens. Microsoft says two screens equal "limitless possibilities," but the limits are clear: this device is for people who live their lives inside Microsoft's ecosystem.
Google Tasks doesn't get a lot of attention, and it's not hard to see why. It has very little functionality, and Google Keep can do everything it can do. Tasks might be getting a little more useful, though. Google recently outed a new version of Tasks sidebar in a blog post, and it has a few handy additions.
What's on Ryan's desk: So many keyboards
You might call it a hobby or an obsession, but I call it a "business expense"
Most of the things I use day-to-day are unimportant—a rotating collection of gadgets I'm reviewing but have little connection to. Keyboards are the exception. If I'm going to talk about what I use on a daily basis, the keyboards are the most interesting part. I don't do anything just a little bit. I know this about myself, and that's why purchasing my first "fancy" mechanical keyboard a few years back was a conflicting experience. On one hand, it was really cool. On the other, it knew it was going to be very expensive as far as hobbies go. Now, here I am some years later with... well, let's say a lot of keyboards, soldering equipment, keycaps, and spreadsheets to track the arrival of delayed keyboard components. In the interest of brevity, I thought I'd just tell you about my three favorite keyboards in no particular order.
Google Nest Cam Floodlight review: Overpriced and underpowered
When "good enough" is all you can hope for
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Google took a long hiatus from releasing Nest cameras, but it's getting back on the horse in 2021. So far, we've seen a new doorbell, a basic wired camera, and Nest's first battery-powered camera. That camera is also at the heart of Google's new Floodlight Cam (technically known as the Google Nest Cam with Floodlight). We weren't over the moon with the battery-powered Cam, but the addition of those bright lights and a constant source of power makes the Nest Cam with Floodlight a better overall device. However, the app situation is still frustrating, and the $270 price tag is too much—even higher than the smart security cam competition.
Google released Android 12 a few months ago, and it's one of the most significant updates to the platform in years. It has a plethora of new features like the Material You theme engine, privacy toggles, and scrolling screenshots. However, it also loses one important thing: Chromecast volume control. Google apparently needed to ditch the feature for legal reasons, rendering your volume toggle useless while casting media. There is another option to control the volume, but it's not ideal.
Samsung releases third One UI 4 beta for Galaxy S10 and Note10
Samsung isn't forgetting the phones of yesteryear
Buying a Samsung phone used to mean interminable waits for OS updates, but today, Samsung arguably provides the best long-term software support outside of Google. Owners of the S10 and Note10 phones got their second One UI 4 beta several weeks back, and there's already a third version rolling out to testers.
Android 12 brought a major focus on privacy and security with features like microphone and camera toggles and a much better privacy dashboard. Most of these features are well-explained, but the "Private Compute Core" was a bit of a mystery. We and others have speculated about what exactly it does and how, but a newly unearthed comment by long-time Google developer Diane Hackborn lays it all out.
Motorola has long stuck to a stripped-down version of Android on its phones, and that used to mean faster updates than the competition. That's not the case these days, when Samsung can promise monthly patches for four years. Moto is still working at it, though. The Razr-maker has published a list of devices that will get Android 12, as well as a rough timeline: February 2022.
The Sony WF-1000XM4 are our 2021 wireless earbuds of the year
Sony's small earbuds are a huge upgrade
We've reviewed a lot of true wireless earbuds this past year, and one thing is clear: cheap earbuds are getting good. However, expensive earbuds are also improving. Case in point, the Sony WF-1000XM4 earbuds. These buds retail for $280, but you get what you pay for. I'm still going back to the XM4s months after wrapping up the review because they're just so good. They represent a high mark in audio, ANC, battery life, and more. That's why they're the best true wireless earbuds of 2021.
Philips Hue Dimmer Switch v2 review: The smartest way to dumb down your smart lights
Coming full circle
I've reviewed products from a lot of smart lighting brands, but the ones I spend my own money on are usually Philips Hue. I've always found Hue to be more reliable than the competition, and recent app improvements have made me even happier with my smart lights. That said, sometimes you just want a light switch.
Moto G Power (2022) review: Don't call it an upgrade
It'll be available everywhere, but you've got better options
Motorola has been around longer than everyone reading this. It's gone through some changes in the decades—spin-offs, acquisitions, mergers, and almost everything else that can happen to a company. Today, Motorola's mobile incarnation is on the rise. In the wake of LG's withdrawal from the smartphone world, Moto has been picking up market share to become the third-largest OEM in the US. It got there not with flashy flagship phones, but with cheap, competent devices that carriers love to stock in their stores.