Android Police

Taylor Kerns-Gadgets Editor

Taylor Kerns

Gadgets Editor

  • 1489
    articles
  • 801
    News
  • 85
    Features
  • 8
    Lists
  • 75
    Guides
  • 111
    Reviews
  • 409
    Deals

Page 55

About Taylor Kerns

Taylor was an amateur phone nerd for the better part of a decade prior to joining Android Police in 2018, where he's since authored more than a thousand articles about all things Android. Taylor serves as Gadgets Editor, and you'll see his byline on editorials, reviews, comparative buyer's guides, and technical explainers, as well as the occasional piece of breaking news. He's got soft spots for personal audio, wearable tech, smart lights, and mobile photography. There's a good chance he's carrying a Pixel phone right now. In his time away from AP, you'll probably catch Taylor hanging out with his two dogs, playing Xbox, or out shooting with his beloved Fuji X-T5. Send him memes and fan mail at taylor@androidpolice.com.

Latest Articles

You've almost certainly said something you regretted in a chat, whether it was because you were tired, angry, or just looking at the wrong conversation — but Facebook Messenger could soon get a feature that'll let you take those misguided statements back. Evidence has been found that an "unsend" option is in the works.

Xiaomi released its gaming phone, the Black Shark, in China last April. The black and neon green device packs some impressive specs for its modest price, including a Snapdragon 845 and either six or eight gigs of RAM. At the time, there was no word on whether it'd be coming to the rest of the world, but now, the company has announced that it'll release in Europe on November 16.

Black Friday seems to have become a season, as we're seeing more and more "Black Friday" deals in effect well in advance of the day. A lot of them are pretty good, though. For example, right now, Best Buy has the Jaybird X3 Sport wireless earbuds for $59.99, less than half what they originally cost.

If you're a stickler for details, have we got a treat for you: the latest update to Google Keep Notes (née Google Keep) colors the navigation bar to match the note you're currently viewing.

Samsung announced its first Android Go device, the Galaxy J2 Core, back in August, and it's already back with a sequel. The company has quietly released information about the new J4 Core, and it's about what you'd expect from a follow-up to the unexciting J2 Core.

Google Podcasts is pretty widely regarded as lacking in features its competition has — notably, you can't mark multiple episodes as played at once or set the app to automatically download new episodes of shows you're subscribed to — but it's gradually improving. Case in point: the app can now generate links to podcasts and shows for easy sharing.

As much as we like it, there's no escaping the fact that the $800-plus Pixel 3 is pricey. Bundles can help take the sting out of that sticker shock, though, especially when the freebie is a high-quality product. Right now, Best Buy is including just such a quality item: the Nest Cam is free with any Pixel 3 or 3 XL purchased and activated on Verizon.

Believe it or not, it's just two weeks and change until Thanksgiving — and more to the point, Black Friday. Target's ad is out, and the retailer has got some solid deals on Google goods: $50 off the Home and Home Hub, plus money off the Google Home Mini and both Chromecast and Chromecast Ultra.

A smart speaker is a sensible place to start when building a smart home setup. If you're not sure the cost of entry will be worth it, though, this deal may speak to you: Amazon has refurbished units of its first-generation Echo speaker for just 50 bucks, $30 off its historical price of $79.99.The Echo launched at $180, which isn't an insignificant ask; $49.99 isn't nearly as steep. And while yes, this is the older Echo, the newer one doesn't have any advantage when it comes to functionality — it's pretty much the same product in a prettier package. That one's currently going for $79.99, so it's up to you whether a better looking speaker is worth the $30 up-charge.The Echo is apparently Amazon's best selling unlocked cell phone.

Jaybird is hitting it hard this year. Following the release of the X4 earbuds in September and the entry-level Tarah last month, the company is back at it with the Tarah Pro, a $159.99 pair of buds that can purportedly eke out a truly impressive 14 hours of playback on a single charge.

Google Photos is fantastic for storing and organizing all your pictures, but there's something just neat about flipping through a paper photo album. The service has provided those since last year, but your options for customizing them were more or less limited to choosing which photos to include and whether you wanted a hard or soft cover. Now, you're able to customize the layout of each page for a more personalized album.

Google announced a refreshed Chromecast at its hardware event in New York earlier this month. That device is now on sale for $35, the same price as the previous model. The new version has replaced the old on the Google Store, and retailers are clearing their stock of the older generation — and some Target locations have it on clearance for as low as $10.64.

Crappy posts are part and parcel with any social network, and Twitter has more than its fair share of spam, scams, and bald-faced lies. The platform has always allowed users to report spammy posts, but now, the functionality is getting more granular, letting you specify the particular type of spam you're flagging.

Making a typo you can't correct is one of the more frustrating parts of text communication. Viber seems to agree, because now you're able to edit messages you've sent through the service. Like in other apps that offer similar functions, edited messages will be marked as such to limit any possible confusion.

The United States' most popular mobile payments platform, Starbucks, has always been useful for those who frequent the chain. With this week's update v5, though, it's getting considerably nicer to use, with easier access to the barcode screen and the ability to remember your order as you navigate the app.

Samsung's top-tier devices are generally up there with the Pixel and the iPhone when it comes to camera quality, and the Korean electronics manufacturer seems set to further step up its mobile photography game. The company has announced that it's developed new 48- and 32-megapixel smartphone camera sensors which it expects to be in mass production later this year.

Smart speakers are great, but for the most part, they're stationary. If you sometimes want to take your Echo Dot out onto the patio, you could run an extension cord — but a more flexible solution would be something like the iHome iAV5, which attaches to the Dot to provide both battery power and improved sound. Right now, it's 20 bucks off on Amazon.Not only does the iAV5 improve the Dot's sound and mobility, it also lights up in a bunch of different colors (five, to be precise). It can even pulse with your music, if you're into that sort of thing. It's designed to work with the second-generation Echo Dot, and is currently $39.99, down from its usual $59.63.

Security cameras are a smart thing to have. Best Buy's got a deal on one particularly compelling cam, the Canary All-in-One. Right now, when you buy the camera, you get a free Echo Spot. Not a bad deal considering the Spot is $129.99 on its own.

Red Dead Redemption II dropped at midnight on Friday, so if you're reading this, you've probably already put somewhere between a few and 40 hours into it. But in a game of this scale, there's plenty to see, and developer Rockstar Games has released a companion app for smartphones and tablets that'll help you find your way around.

Could you or someone you know use a knockin'-around tablet? Considering the holidays are kind of right around the corner (December's five short weeks away!), I'm guessing the answer is yes. Amazon's running a killer deal on its eight-inch Fire tablet, which is currently going for as low as 60 bucks.If you're looking for something to read comics, futz around on social media, or watch videos on, this is a hard deal to beat. All models of the Fire HD 8 are currently $20 off; that means the 16-gigabyte model with ads is just $59.99. Ad-free versions and ones with higher storage capacity are discounted, too — depending on what you want, prices go up to $104.99 — but that base model is at a really tempting price point.

53 54 55 56 57
Page 55 / 75