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There's a new version of Gboard hitting devices tonight, right after Google accidentally sent an internal v6.3 "dogfood" test build out to some users. Oh well, the version that's rolling out in the Play Store right now (also v6.3) is the proper consumer build, and it has some cool new stuff. Searching is now quicker and more powerful, whether you're looking for a webpage, emoji, or a GIF.
The fate of the Moto E was not clear after Lenovo took control of Motorola, but the budget-oriented family of smartphones will continue. Motorola just announced the Moto E4 and E4 Plus, which will begin shipping later this month for a downright reasonable $129.99 and $179.99, respectively.
Skype has been around for a long time and has gone through some big changes over the years. The new v8.0 update might be the biggest one yet, though. It brings some Snapchat-like features including "add-in" services and "Highlights," which are basically Stories. This feels a bit like one giant "fellow kids" meme.
There are plenty of home automation and security platforms these days, but some consumers like to stick to what they know, and ADT has been doing home security for a long time. It offers its own camera and sensor systems, all controlled via the Pulse app with support for third-party devices like Nest. People pay monthly for ADT services, and now some of them are feeling rather ripped off after an update to Pulse blocked access on rooted or modified devices.
The Galaxy S8 and S8+ have been out for a few months, so the sales are really starting to make a dent in the price tag. Today, the dual SIM variants are available on eBay for the lowest price we've see yet. The S8 is $640 and the S8+ is $728. Those are both more than $100 cheaper than the standard carrier variants.
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Google dropped the second Android O developer preview on the first day of I/O last month, but here we are just a few weeks later and Dev Preview 3 is available. The full system images are available for immediate flashing on supported devices, and beta program devices will probably be updated soon. Importantly, this update should include the final APIs for Android O.
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- BlackBerry has since added far more adhesive to the KEYone's screen, making the screen impossible to take out without breaking it. Jerry's new video shows off the more durable model:
It's becoming something of a tradition for a new phone to be subjected to durability tests on the JerryRigEverything YouTube channel. We've seen phones like the Galaxy S8 and Pixel come through the testing okay, but phones like the Nexus 6P and HTC U Ultra haven't fared so well. Today, it's the BlackBerry KEYone going under the knife/lighter/hands. Despite a strong start, the KEYone doesn't last.
Some people use the anonymity afforded by the internet to be jerks. Meanwhile, other people share too much personal information or get taken in by fake news. Google is looking to help the next generation be better at using the internet than we are, and it's doing it with the "Be Internet Awesome" campaign. It's a program that includes resources for parents and educators, and some games for kids. Well, they're educational games, but that still counts.
Having more storage is never a bad thing, but that doesn't mean you should buy it on a whim. It's smarter to wait for a big sale, like we have today on Amazon Goldbox. A variety of SanDisk cards and flash drives are on sale for up to 71% off.One of the most attractive deals today is for SanDisk's 256GB microSD card. It's only $116.95, down from $200. That's 42% off. You can also get the 32GB card for a mere $11.15, down from $26.84 (71% off). There are various regular USB drives, which won't do you much good on Android unless you haul around a converter. However, the SanDisk dual drives are included. Those have either a microUSB or Type-C connector along with a standard Type-A port. These are between $12 (16GB) and $21 (64GB) for Type-C and $29.59 for a 128GB microUSB version.Amazon is also discounting some of SanDisk's Connect wireless drives. These devices produce a WiFi hotspot with built-in storage. They're a bit spendy even with the discount ($55 for 128GB and $144 for 256GB), but you can share files with multiple people.As with all Goldbox deals, these are only valid today. All of them have Prime shipping, too.Source: Amazon
Samsung and its carrier partners can take a long time to get big system updates rolled out to older devices, but at least it happens. Some OEMs would have abandoned a phone from 2015 by now, but T-Mobile is rolling out a Nougat update to the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge, which was promised a few days ago. Bonus: the Tab S2 on T-Mobile is getting the update, too.
The final build of Nova Launcher v5.2 is rolling out to users as we speak. It comes with the usual raft of performance improvements and minor fixes, but this update also brings a little Android O flair to your phone. Nova Launcher now has O-style notification dots. There's other stuff, too. But dots.
You can't keep an eye on your home at all times without a little help, and Canary is one of the many camera manufacturers offering that sort of help. The Canary Flex is an indoor/outdoor camera that can operate with a power cable or entirely wire-free. A single camera is usually $199, but today it's on sale all over for around $158.Canary Flex works with any other Canary cameras you may have, but this one can be mounted outside and operate for months on battery power. All the video you capture will be stored online for free, but only for 12 hours. That's one of the shortest in the product category. However, the $10 monthly plan includes 30 days of storage, home insurance deductible reimbursement, and a longer warranty.The Canary Flex appears to be on sale for about $41 off at various retailers. Here are several places you can get it.
Android TV apps vary greatly in terms of functionality. Some are close to what you get on a phone, but others are focused on a single experience. Case in point, the Twitter app for Android TV that only shows you videos. The new Facebook app is similar—this app simply makes it easier to access the videos in your feed.
The day you've been waiting for is here. Actually, that's a lie. OnePlus is not announcing the OnePlus 5 today. The company is merely telling you when it's going to announce its next flagship phone. It'll be June 20th at 12PM Eastern.
Google started testing a new search feature in the Play Store recently. Well, not really recently. Search suggestions began appearing for some people late last year, but now it appears to be rolling out to everyone. Just do a search, and there they are.
The first gen FLIR One was only for iPhone, but the second gen had Android support. The problem: in those days microUSB still reigned supreme, and it was non-reversible. That meant some phones had the port facing the "wrong" way to use the FLIR One dongle. Today, FLIR is announcing a new third generation FLIR One thermal camera that adopts the Type-C port. There are plenty of other changes, too.
The time has come for a new mobile Humble Bundle, and it's similar to one we saw before. This is the second iteration of the Crescent Moon Games Humble Bundle, which comes with eleven games if you unlock all three tiers. It just started, so you've got two weeks to make up your mind.
Google is rolling out new Android builds for its devices today, but it'll take a few days for the OTA to reach your device the old-fashioned way. If you want, the system images and OTA files are already available for sideloading. Pixel owners who have been experiencing freezes might not want to wait. Google says this update should address that problem.
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Google spent a lot of time at I/O talking about Assistant and Google Home. In fact, it gave a free Home to everyone who attended I/O. Today, a lot of those devices are spitting out errors instead of controlling smart home devices and answering questions. According to multiple online complaints, there's a Google Home outage affecting a significant portion of users.
Amazon famously misread the market when it launched the Fire Phone in 2014 without any Google apps. Scarcely a year later Amazon had abandoned the device in the face of minuscule sales figures. Now, it's rumored to be prepping a new smartphone, but unlike the Fire Phone, this one will apparently run a version of Android with Google services.