latest
Amazon's newest Kindle e-readers come with USB-C charging and optional Qi wireless
Getting excited about USB-C? What is this, an Apple device?
Amazon is the undisputed leader when it comes to e-readers, thanks to its iconic Kindle. The latter is now so popular that it's declined in a variety of models, including the Kindle Oasis and Paperwhite. The latter was last renewed in 2018 and is starting to age, especially given it still has a microUSB port. Thankfully, Amazon just announced three new Kind Paperwhite models, including a Signature edition, as well as a kid-friendly model.
Here's how to fix those mysterious Android WebView crashes
Download it from the Play Store or APK Mirror now
Read update
If you're experiencing a bunch of apps suddenly crashing on your recent Samsung phone, you're not alone. This afternoon US time, reports from dozens, then hundreds of users on the Samsung subreddit started coming in, complaining of apps crashing on their phones, constantly and seemingly at random. It's causing some major headaches. You can quickly fix the problem by disabling the Android System WebView app, or updating it via the Play Store or APK Mirror.
You've probably seen a certain story popping up on your news feeds this morning about the "leak" of a "Galaxy Note 10 Tesla Edition." No such product has leaked and there is no reason to believe a Tesla Edition Galaxy Note 10 exists. This wasn't even a rumor until this morning, when a certain publication rather renowned recently for producing brain-dead clickbait posted about it, but allow us to unravel this very, very, very easily debunked (did I mention just how easy it was?) story.
While there's been plenty of talk about the consequences of Google, ARM, Qualcomm, the SD Association, the Wi-Fi Alliance, carriers, and the USB-IF no longer working with Huawei, one company has been kept out of the discussion to date: the Bluetooth SIG.
Samsung has forced popular repair advocates and DIY repair solutions store iFixit to remove their teardown of the Samsung Galaxy Fold. iFixit says it was pressured into taking down the post because Samsung discovered who supplied iFixit the handset, and that supplier then requested the takedown. While not stated outright, the obvious thought bubble here is that Samsung may have been threatening repercussions for that supplier - repercussions that could have destroyed or seriously harmed its business with Samsung. iFixit keeps it all pretty vague, but the good news is you can still read their teardown, thanks to the Streisand Effect The Internet Archive.
I've been using the Galaxy S10 for the last few days here at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, and I thought I'd share some of the photos I've captured thus far in a little gallery below. You can see photos in this gallery from both the standard and telephoto (zoom/portrait) lens here - I've not had a good opportunity to use the ultra-wide camera just yet. Take a look.
The Galaxy Fold is... kind of obscene - so it's only fitting that Samsung's showing it off at MWC inside of a huge glass display case so nobody can get very close to it. Or touch it. Samsung has four Folds at its booth here in Barcelona, and they look pretty cool! We did find that the displays do appear to have some dimpling on the plastic (see lower left of the top photo), and there's definitely a noticeable crease in the middle where the hinge is, which is... not the best.
LG announced its two flagships for 2019 earlier today — the G8 ThinQ and V50 5G ThinQ. Both devices have their share of interesting features, and if you're wondering where to buy them in the United States, all four major carriers have announced which devices they will offer.
Last week, I had a chance to spend some time with LG's upcoming high-end smartphone, the G8. In recent years, the G series lineup has seemed a bit technically short-changed compared to its rivals from Samsung, and even LG's own V series of ultra-high-end smartphones. 2019 may be the year that's finally a little less true.
Samsung officially announced its latest tablet today, the Galaxy Tab S5e. And I'm not sure what it's trying to do - or who it's competing with, other than Samsung's own products. In the tablet market, you have one player that essentially matters: Apple. Apple makes full-size iPads starting at $330 for the classically proportioned 9.7" iPad, all the way up to a staggering $1000 for the entry-level version of the 12.9" iPad Pro. Storage options and LTE can send them up into the stratosphere from there.
Read update
- As Marcelo notes in a comment below, Samsung has uploaded the English version of the video to its official YouTube channel today. Here it is:
There's already plenty of anticipation for Samsung's foldable smartphone, but there's nothing like a briefly uploaded YouTube video to stoke the flames a bit. It seems that Samsung Vietnam mistakenly uploaded a teaser video showing off a handful of already-here and concept technologies, including a brief glimpse of a handsome foldable phone. But before you get too excited, there's reason for skepticism here.
It's the most wonderful time of the year when everything goes on sale and retailers everywhere push hard to get their wares into your hands. If you've been holding out for a sale before choosing between the Lenovo Smart Display and the Google Home Hub, now is your chance to find a deal. We’ll tell you where to look if you want to save some cash. But before you go shopping, here are some things to consider before you decide whether to bring home Lenovo's 8- or 10-inch smart display, or Google's smaller Home Hub.
At the Samsung Developer Conference today, Samsung announced its new Infinity folding display, the basis for an upcoming foldable smartphone that we now know will launch in 2019, news Google let slip earlier today. The device didn't have any specifications detailed, but the concept is certainly interesting.
Read update
At its annual Dev Summit in Mountain View this morning, Android VP Dave Burke announced that Google was partnering to optimize the Android platform for an upcoming foldable device... built by Samsung. The foldable phone in question will launch next year according to Burke, who appears to have confirmed something Samsung hasn't itself yet announced. We're currently at Samsung's Developer Conference in San Francisco, which overlaps directly with the Android Dev Summit.
Sitting through Samsung's Unpacked press conference in Brooklyn yesterday, I wasn't struck with a barrage of technical specifications, comparisons to the competition, or endless feature demos. Samsung didn't even really attempt to sell the new Note as revolutionary, or to convince its audience that they were getting a great product for the money. Instead, it appealed to something more human, more base: emotion.
The Pixel phones have been out for several weeks now, and a lot has been said about the camera. I will try to comment on some of the things that I’ve felt have been a bit overlooked, in a deeper dive into the Google Camera 4.2 on the Pixel XL. Most of the issues, if not all, should also apply to the smaller Pixel phone.
Today, as we expected it would, Samsung announced two new phones: the Galaxy Note 5, and the Galaxy S6 Edge+ (what a name). We were at the event and spent a few brief moments with each of the devices, got some impressions, and took some photos. So naturally it's time to talk hands-on with the Note 5 and Edge+.
Remember Blackphone? Chances are you haven't seen it on store shelves. This $600+ handset, built in response to recent concerns over government surveillance and Internet vulnerabilities, strives to keep your communications private and your information secure. The phone was a joint project between Silent Circle and hardware partner Geeksphone. Today the former has announced it's buying out the latter, giving it full control over the Blackphone project.
Privacy is important. In an age where, more than ever before, we are constantly exposing ourselves (no, not that way!) through social media, online services, and government security / surveillance directives, being a little concerned with your own privacy is totally normal. I get it.
We were lucky enough to spend some time with Qualcomm's upcoming Toq smartwatch this afternoon, and I left impressed. The Toq's primary value comes in the form of a Mirasol display. Mirasol was demoed in "production ready" form in 2011 at CES by Qualcomm, but the actual products never came.