About Ryan Whitwam
Ryan is a tech/science writer, skeptic, lover of all things electronic, and Android fan. In his spare time he reads golden-age sci-fi and sleeps, but rarely at the same time. His wife tolerates him as few would. He's the author of a sci-fi novel called The Crooked City, which is available on Amazon and Google Play.
Latest Articles
Smartphones come with more internal storage these days, but sometimes that just isn't enough. For those devices with the necessary slot, a microSD card can allow you to carry a massive media library around in your pocket. You can get some of the fastest cards out there today for a nice discount. Samsung's EVO Select cards are all on sale. The smaller ones are just a few bucks off, but you save more on the larger ones.These are all Class 10 UHS 3 cards with maximum read speeds of 100MB/s and write speeds of 90MB/s. Samsung pushes them as ideal for recording 4K video, but you can use them for whatever you want. The cards come with a full-sized SD adapter, too.The 256GB card is discounted the most. It's $129.99, $20 off the usual price. The 128GB is usually $44.99, but it's $36.99 right now. The 64GB is $19.99, down from $22.99, and the 32GB is $9.99 instead of $12.99. It's wild you can get 32GB of speedy external storage for under ten bucks. Also of note: the 256GB card has free 1-day Prime shipping in many areas, so you can get it before the holiday.Source: Amazon
Pandora for Android TV adds premium subscription support, Google Assistant, and more
Pandora went many years without a traditional music streaming option like Spotify or Play Music, but it eventually added the $10 Premium tier that allows you to play whatever tuns you want. However, the Android TV client has been lagging behind. Today, a new version is rolling out that adds support for Premium subscriptions along with a few other features.
Every carrier is clamoring to roll out a 5G network, or at least something they can reasonably market as 5G. After a long, long development period, the 3GPP wireless governance organization has released the first official 5G standard, known as 5G NR. Formalizing the 5G standard gives carriers and hardware makers the pieces they need to begin moving full speed ahead toward a 5G future. Maybe we can get this transition done without anyone re-branding their 4G service as 5G.
In this age of data breaches and keylogging malware, passwords might not be enough to secure your accounts. That's where two-factor authentication (2FA) comes into play. These single-use codes can keep your data safe, but not all services support 2FA in the standard way. Case in point, Twitter sends a text message for 2FA codes even after you set up an authentication app. So annoying, but you can finally turn SMS off.
It's hard to overstate my satisfaction—Bridge Constructor Portal is now available in the Play Store
It's time to return to Aperture Science for some totally not deadly tests. Note: this assessment of deadliness is not guaranteed. There may actually be a great deal of danger, depending on your construction abilities. GLaDOS will be your guide as you take on your role as bridge builder in this fusion of Portal and the Bridge Builder games, and GLaDOS is not so good at keeping people alive, either.
The high-end Pixelbook with Core i7 CPU is now available on the Google Store, ships in January
Google has a history of selling very expensive Chromebooks, and that continues with the Pixelbook. Even the entry-level Pixelbook is more expensive than a lot of Windows laptops with its $999 price tag (currently on sale for $899). The most expensive Pixelbook variant has been unavailable until now. Google just started taking orders for the Core i7 version, which costs $1,549 on sale ($100 off).
Arena of Valor, one of the biggest mobile MOBAs in the world, is finally available in North America
You've probably played multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) games on Android—there are some popular ones like Vainglory and Mobile Legends. However, the most popular one in the world is only now launching in North America. You can hit the Play Store right now and get Arena of Valor, but you might be more familiar with its names in other markets like Kings of Glory and Strike of Kings.
Advertising is the lifeblood of Google, so the company has always had an understandably awkward relationship with ad-blocking software. Google seems to understand why people use ad-blockers, though. There are a lot of terrible ads out there, but blocking them all is bad for Google. That's why Chrome is getting an ad-blocker for "bad ads" soon, and now we know how it'll work.
Facebook will use facial recognition technology to alert you when you show up in someone's photo
Everyone has a camera in their pocket now, and they all have places to post those photos on the internet. If you're a little sensitive about how often you show up in pics on the internet, Facebook has a new privacy tool that may interest you. Using facial recognition technology, Facebook can alert you to any photos in which you're visible regardless of whether or not you've been tagged.
How good is your phone when it comes to gaming? There are a few ways to find out, but 3DMark is probably the best. That's the only benchmarking it does, after all. The app has been pretty clunky for a while, but it just got a major update with a cleaner UI, more tests, new charts, and a ton more.
Nokia hasn't been a player in smartphones for years, but it's back with the help of manufacturer HMD. There have been various Android-powered Nokia phones this year, and the latest is the mid-range Nokia 5. The Nokia phones of old have a reputation for being durable, but what about this new one? The JerryRigEverything YouTube channel seeks to find out. Spoiler: things went pretty well for the Nokia 5.
Amazon has so many Echo things now that it can be hard to keep track. There's the Echo Show, Plus, Spot, Dot, and Squiggle. Okay, I made that last one up, but you never know what Amazon is going to do next. Today, it's releasing the previously announced Echo Connect, which links your home phone to Alexa devices. You can order yours today for $34.99.The Echo Connect plugs into a standard phone line, but it's not actually Alexa-enabled. Instead, it serves as the bridge between your home phone and Alexa devices. After syncing your contacts with the Alexa app, you can make and answer phone calls via the Echo, Echo Show, and all the other Alexa things. Unlike the VoIP-only calling features of Alexa, these are all calls to and from your home phone number. You will, of course, need a home phone line.An Echo Connect costs $35—tack on another $30 for an Echo Dot if you don't already have a compatible device. So, that's $65 for a smart speaker phone setup for your home. If you don't have home phone service, Amazon has a $89.99 bundle with the Ooma Telo home VoIP hub. The Connect comes with free Prime shipping and it arrives before Christmas.Source: Amazon
Making your home smarter might involve swapping in a connected thermostat that can save energy or adding a few cameras to keep an eye on things. But what about getting into the house? Smart locks are weirdly expensive, but the August smart lock is on sale today at a few retailers. It's $90 cheaper than usual, and you can get it in time for Christmas.August installs on the inside of the door, but it uses the existing exterior hardware. That means you still have a regular key in the event August isn't working. It connects over Bluetooth, but you'll need the WiFi hub add-on to connect it to your network. The lock is controlled via the August app, Alexa, Siri, or Google Assistant. You just need to pop in some AA batteries whenever they get low.The August Lock usually retails for $229.99, and it doesn't often come down much from that. You can get it for $139.99 today at Amazon and Best Buy (possibly elsewhere, too). Amazon offers one-day Prime shipping on this device in many areas as well.Source: Amazon, Best Buy
Anyone who grew up on the internet prior to the smartphone era has probably spent a lot of time on AOL Instant Messenger, or AIM in the common vernacular. AIM made sense in that world, but not anymore. True to its previous announcement, AIM has gone offline today.
[Update: More details] New Google Home Mini update 1.29 restores top tap functionality with long-press on the side
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The Google Home Mini is a super-affordable way to get Google Assistant in your life, but Google was forced to hobble the device shortly after launch because a sticky touch sensor caused Artem's Mini to record everything he said. Part of that functionality is now coming back with a small tweak. Instead of tapping the top of the device, you'll be able to long-press the side.
Get all the Star Wars: The Last Jedi wallpapers from the special edition OnePlus 5T [Download]
OnePlus has a neat Star Wars version of its latest phone, but only in India. That's a bummer for the rest of us, but you can get the cool exclusive wallpapers from that phone right here. They're not the highest resolution, but 'tis the season for Star Wars.
Finding directions is a popular use for Google Assistant, but what if you aren't driving? Or, what if you only drive sometimes, but your commute involves walking or biking? Google appears to be rolling out a new setting in Assistant to accommodate this situation. It's got the very casual name "Getting around."
Customization has always been one of Android's strengths with various options for home screens, icons, stock app replacements, and widgets. Anyone who's gotten deep into customizing the UI has probably come across the Zooper Widget. You won't come across it anymore, though. Zooper and Zooper Pro have both disappeared from the Play Store.
BLU Life One X3 now available with 5,000mAh battery for $149.99 ($100 off for a limited time)
BLU makes a lot of phones—it can actually be hard to keep them all straight. The latest device to join the collection is the BLU Life One X3. To set this one apart, BLU has equipped the Life X3 with a gigantic 5,000mAh battery. The phone has some other interesting qualities, but that battery is probably something else.The BLU Life One X3 has a 5.5-inch 1080p LCD under curved glass, and the frame is all aluminum. The 5,000mAh battery won't charge as fast as the Life One X2, though. The X3 lacks Qualcomm Quick Charge because it's running a MediaTek chip. It's the octa-core Mediatek 6753. You also get 3GB of RAM and 32GB of storage.This phone will eventually cost $249.99, but BLU is selling it at $149.99 for a limited time. At $250, this phone seems like a tough sell, but the discounted price is solid. It's in stock on Amazon already with Prime shipping.
Spell check is, thankfully, something that smartphones support in this day and age. Grammar is a tougher nut to crack, though. On the desktop, Grammarly offers tools that go beyond a simple spell check, and now you can do that on Android, too. The new Grammarly Keyboard will pedantically pick apart everything you write in search of grammatical errors. However, it's a little lacking in actual keyboard features.