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Gamesir G8 Galileo controller review: Function and form
The perfect controller that slips over your phone for easy marathon gaming sessions
Many of our favorite Android gaming controllers make ergonomic sacrifices to take up as little space as possible for on-the-go gaming. The Gamesir G8 Galileo is the biggest controller we've reviewed yet, but all this mass is put to good use. After testing the controller for a few months, I can also say it would be the best snap-on controller I've reviewed, if not for one major flaw.
Best Wi-Fi 7 mesh routers in 2024
Wi-Fi 7 is still new, but there are already some great mesh networking kits available
Wi-Fi 7 was certified by the Wi-Fi Alliance in the first days of 2024, paving the way for faster and more reliable internet. It's set to take over for Wi-Fi 6 and 6E, and router manufacturers have already hit the market with some Wi-Fi 7 routers to accommodate the (so far) limited amount of devices supporting the new standard.
Best Chromebook monitors in 2024
Check out this wide range of great external monitors for your Chromebook
Chromebooks are versatile devices that excel while used on the go, at school, and at home. But sometimes, the laptop's built-in screen just doesn't have enough space, resolution, or color to properly tackle the task at hand. Fortunately, the best Chromebook monitors can change all of that, providing you, in most cases, with a more permanent setup to accommodate different needs.
Moft's X Tablet Stand is the incredibly portable kickstand your tablet deserves
Origami-inspired design makes it an excellent companion to any large slate
I love kickstands. Everything should have kickstands, and the fact that everything doesn't is a damn tragedy. That's especially true for tablets, little slabs of fragile glass that are designed for media consumption. Despite some sterling work from Microsoft, Lenovo, and (occasionally) Samsung, tablets with kickstands as an integral part of their design are still rare. But with this cheap add-on from Moft, you can give almost any tablet the kickstand it deserves.The Moft X Tablet Stand is essentially cardboard, fabric, a bit of glue, and a few magnets. But all that unassuming stuff is assembled in such a way that it's an origami kickstand for your tablet. And unlike the other various small stands on the market, it's happy to travel with your tablet wherever it goes, stuck onto the back and folded down to about three millimeters flat.
With two unfolded positions, plus an extra fold in the triangular portion, the X Tablet stand has a total of four different angles at which it can rest. You can add an extra two for viewing your tablet in portrait mode, for a total of six positions. Technically there are four more options (reversed horizontal and vertical, but the extra cutout doesn't change those angles), though honestly you're unlikely to use those.
And that's it! It's a little add-on that unfolds when you need a stand, and disappears when you don't. While it's practically weightless and won't get in the way of any normal tablet grip, it's juuuust thick enough that it won't work with a protective case. But no worries: you can stick it to the outside of the case instead. In addition to being perfect for movies and music, I've found myself holding onto the unfolded stand when I'm carrying it around, for comfortably playing games like Hearthstone.
The stand's magnets keep it open and stable when unfolded, such that you'll never accidentally collapse it with an errant finger, and it stays nice and flat when folded up. The only tricky part is figuring out precisely where to place it on your tablet's butt, because it's hard to judge exactly where the "sweet spot" will be to optimally balance it when deployed.But here again, Moft's excellent design is on display. The adhesive square on the back is some kind of magical mystery glue: it's sticky enough to stay in place without budging, but giving enough to come loose with enough pressure and leave no residue. I've used this thing on four different tablets (an HP Chromebook x2, a Pixel Slate, a Lenovo Chromebook Duet, and the iPad Air in these photos), years apart, and it still has no problem coming off cleanly and going onto a new one.
The Moft X Tablet Stand is a little pricey for what it is, at $30. With a size of 150x210 milimeters, it's ideally sized for 10-inch tablets — bigger ones work fine, but an 8-inch tablet is too small. There are mini options for phones, though I can't say I need to prop one up often enough for it to appeal to me.But it's worth it. Dollar for dollar, the X Tablet Stand might just be the most useful mobile accessory I've ever purchased. Pick one up and forget your travel stands forever.Buy: Amazon
At the start of this year, Google announced it was working on Assistant devices for your car. The idea is to bring the same convenience of an always-listening smart speaker into your vehicle of choice, without requiring an expensive Android Auto head unit. The first product in this category is the Anker Roav Bolt, a small device that plugs into a car charging port.
Truly wireless earbuds are fast becoming a crowded space, and it's getting tougher to discern who the big players really are, and who's just the latest to try and cash in on the next trend in personal audio. Enter the Zolo Liberty+.
Usually, we aren't too into Kickstarter stuff here at AP. No small number of crowdfunded endeavors have failed to materialize in the past, and too many of them are merely rebadged OEM goods. But in this brave new dongle-filled world, the HyperDrive has caught our eye. It's a combo USB-C hub, Qi charger, and phone stand all in one. And, unlike many Kickstarter promises, this one has already hit its funding goal.
Every new phone deserves to be protected, especially when you have an all-glass Samsung S8/S8+. I owned the much more fragile S7 Edge with its steeper curved display. There wasn’t a day where I wouldn’t have the phone in a case unless I was briefly taking it out for a cleaning. Since Samsung opted for an elegant, unique design with the S8, the display is costly to replace. I haven’t seen the official cost to repair the phone's display yet; although I’d imagine it’s more than the $250 for the S7 Edge. No case will guarantee 100% protection for your phone, but it will provide significantly more protection than no case at all.I will include numerous types of cases in this roundup from different companies. Feedback is always welcome, along with any questions. If there is a certain case you would like to see, drop me a comment below, and I’ll do my best to add it.My S8+ has a screen protector installed with all the reviews. I opted for a simple wet install film after experiencing the many failures of glass screen protectors during my S7 Edge and now S8+ ownership. So far, I have found the case-friendly versions of these films work with most cases. If there happens to be an issue, I’ll do my best to note it where applicable.
Last year we saw the release of a wearable armband for Pokémon Go that not only allowed you to catch Pokémon but also allowed interaction with Pokéstops, all without taking your phone out of your pocket. This wearable is known as the Pokémon Go Plus. Well, it would appear that Japan is getting a new Pokémon Go Plus accessory that allows you to wear the device on your finger instead of on your arm. That's right, there's a new ring attachment available for the Pokémon Go Plus in Japan.
There's a big Samsung event in New York City next month. It will probably be where the company announces its next-generation Galaxy Note series - though they seem to be a little early this time around, the latter half of the year is when Sammy likes to bust out its big phones. We've already seen some convincing photos of two phones identified as the Galaxy Note 5 and Galaxy S6 Edge+ (a super-sized version of the S6 Edge without the Note line's compulsory stylus). Now we're seeing even more of the former.
Logitech is older than I am. Not too much older, mind you - the Switzerland-based computer accessory company was founded in 1981 - but old enough that I can remember my dad using a Logitech keyboard on the home-built desktop he ran on a desk in the closet, back when having a computer in the living room was still a social faux pas. When the entire family upgraded to laser mice, an insane and futuristic luxury in the early 2000s, the friendly Logitech logo was emblazoned on all of them.
OnePlus never met a product it couldn't portend in the most annoying way possible. So it is with the company's new "game changer," a device teased (where else?) on the official OnePlus forum. A representative says it's not a tablet or a smartwatch, and offers three teaser images to try and whet the appetites of potentially new and repeat customers. Let's have a look, shall we?
The announcements are coming fast and loose out of Mobile World Congress. Huawei has been steadily sharing new phablets, watches, and more. One of the less conventional gadgets to join the company's lineup includes a Wi-Fi hotspot designed for automobiles, dubbed CarFi. It has been designed to share a 4G LTE connection with up to 10 devices simultaneously, and it doesn't look half bad.
The Nexus 9's folio keyboard case is an expensive accessory, even by Google's standards. The product, which both protects the tablets and supplies a Bluetooth keyboard, comes in at $129.99. But Amazon has recently dropped its price to , a difference of $42.
Nostalgia has the peculiar tendency to improve things with age. Despite the fact that a new luxury sedan might be objectively better in every way than, say, a '69 Chevelle, a collector might expend hundreds of hours and twice as much money restoring the original Chevy. Nowhere is this phenomenon more apparent than in the gaming world, where players seem to venerate the games, systems, and companies that they grew up with.
Leading up to the launch of the One M8, HTC started posting some of its apps to the Play Store. This arrangement allows it to roll out changes to particular apps without having to issue firmware updates, which is what it has recently done. The HTC Dot View app has gained a number of new features that expand upon the functionality owners of the accessory can tap into.
Automatic Link Review: The One Nag Whose Yammering Might Actually Improve Your Driving
A review for the Automatic Link.
I love to drive. No, seriously. I'm someone who actually enjoyed commuting to work, back before I landed my first gig putting words on the web. I'll gladly run to the grocery store to knock a few items off our shopping list, then sometimes head back on the same day to pick up something we forgot. If a friend lives less than two hours away, then they're local. Let's hang out this weekend.
Before the end of this year, the Nod ring may just offer perhaps the sleekest way yet to control your Android devices, smart TV, computer, and other devices using the Force - ahem, Bluetooth. Just by sliding this gadget onto a finger, users should be able to replicate swipes and mouse movements with a wave of the hand.
The Automatic Link is the iPhone of OBD2 adapters. It's typically priced at $99.99, a price up to ten times higher than what competing hardware goes for on Amazon. What the product has that those alternatives don't, primarily, is a dedicated app that came to Android earlier this month. The gadget is currently available on Amazon for $79.99, 20% lower than its usual price.
It doesn't matter which phone a Sony QX10 or QX100 owner uses, these cameras are better. The drawback is that the user experience is nothing short of awkward. One particular issue is slow NFC connection times, making it challenging to capture spontaneous shots (and aren't those the best kind?). Fortunately, this is the type of problem an update can address. Firmware version 3.0 is now available for both models, doing precisely that.