Latest Articles
Google's Upcoming Android Q Gestures are a Mess
Google has had a long time to figure out how they want to implement gesture navigation in Android. After all this time, Android Q gestures are still a mess.
In 2019 it seems every Android device has to at least have the option for gestural navigation. Samsung, OnePlus, Huawei, and many other Chinese manufacturers come out of the box with a gesture control option now. In an attempt to perhaps get ahead of the problem before true fragmentation really takes hold, Google has also been working to come up with a suite of gestures. Google's latest Android Q Beta brought with it a new set of system navigation gestures. These gestures have been tweaked and changed through Android Q's entire beta process. Unfortunately, Google's latest crack at gesture navigation comes up short for me and winds up feeling like something bolted on to Android, rather than an intuitive, clever, helpful system for moving around a device. Let's take a look at why they're sort of a mess right now.
OnePlus Bullets Wireless 2 sound better than they should and have great battery life
OnePlus has improved the aptly named OnePlus Bullets Wireless 2. Let’s take a look and see if they’re still a compelling option.
Last year, OnePlus introduced their first wireless(-ish) headphones, the OnePlus Bullets. These launched, somewhat ironically, with their last device equipped with a headphone jack, the OnePlus 6. The bullets were generally well received, and we found them to be a solid, no frills, low-cost Bluetooth audio option. Now that OnePlus has, unfortunately, killed the 3.5mm headphone jack on their most recent flagships, they’ve updated and improved the aptly named OnePlus Bullets Wireless 2. Let’s take a look and see if they’re still a compelling option.
Samsung is treating U.S. unlocked device owners like second-rate citizens
When spending $1000+ directly with Samsung for an unlocked smartphone, the experience shouldn’t be worse than a carrier version.
Not too long ago, Samsung began selling their mobile phones direct to consumers here in the United States via either samsung.com or the Shop Samsung App. This was great news as taking out the middleman (carriers) is always welcome. Customers are, of course, still free to buy a carrier-branded phone from any number of carriers of their choosing. However, for a couple of generations now, Samsung themselves have offered an Unlocked (U1) version that’s free of carrier branding, carrier boot screens, carrier apps, and any other entanglements to one’s provider. In fact, the main US Samsung website’s landing page shows the Galaxy S10 with a prominent “Buy Now” button with choices of carrier or unlocked versions. Obviously, selling phones direct is an important task for Samsung. Their unlocked versions are a little different when it comes to updates, however.
Hands-on with Samsung's ridiculous $1,600 Ceramic Galaxy S10+
The ceramic Galaxy S10+ is only available with 8GB of RAM/512GB of storage or 12GB of RAM/1TB of storage, both of which are overkill. So I bought one.
Samsung's Galaxy S10+ comes in a large variety of shapes and sizes. There are 3 sizes and several colors within each size along with multiple storage tiers. In the largest Galaxy S10+ there is even an option for a Ceramic back plate rather than standard glass. The ceramic option is only available with 8GB of RAM and 512GB of storage or 12GB of RAM and 1TB of storage, both of which are overkill and expensive. So I bought one.
Why the OnePlus 6 is Still a Better Buy Than the OnePlus 6T
I've used both the OnePlus 6 and the OnePlus 6T, and despite being released months before, I still think the OnePlus 6 is the better buy. Here's why.
The past year was a strong, if unusual, year for OnePlus. As expected, we received two flagships from the company: the OnePlus 6 and OnePlus 6T. However, this year, the two devices were closer than ever before, with the earlier model being a compelling device even after the "updated" model was released. The OnePlus 6 is still available for purchase, and, frankly, I think that it’s a better buy than the OnePlus 6T. Let me explain.
Samsung's Good Lock Offers the Coolest Smartphone Features & Customization Nobody Talks About
Samsung Good Lock genuinely changes a great deal of how the phone's UI looks and feels. This is something that other manufacturers don't allow.
Samsung’s Galaxy S and Galaxy Note continue to be the de facto Android experience for millions of people around the globe, remaining the best selling phones among casual crowds and a preferred option among enthusiasts as well. While the devices have been a bit predictable for a while, there’s no arguing that they’re incredibly competent products and certainly two of the most important Android flagships around.
While the iPhone gets 5 years of support, my Galaxy S9+ still can't get timely Security Patches
My Samsung Galaxy S9 is currently four months behind on Android security patches. OEMs need to do better to compete with Apple in this regard.
Apple’s WWDC took place this week, not long after Google’s I/O conference. Each company spent time announcing their planned new features as well as new APIs, new apps, and new ideas. It isn’t a stretch to say that both Android and iOS have become advanced operating systems with complete and competitive feature sets. I’ve been running Android P on my Google Pixel 2 XL, and love it or hate it, a lot has changed in small but key areas of the user experience. On the contrary, iOS 12 looks nearly identical to the previous release but it comes with some “under the hood” changes and some quality-of-life improvements. Apple has mostly promised faster performance, AR improvements, grouped notifications like Android (FINALLY), and built-in Tasker-like Siri functionality that seems quite practical.
After Samsung announced the Galaxy S7 Edge, I wound up preordering one. When it came in (early, thanks T-Mobile) I was greeted with my first taste of Samsung’s Marshmallow TouchWiz. My Note5 just got 6.0.1 today (No thanks T-Mobile.) Overall things were fairly similar between the Lollipop and Marshmallow builds of TouchWiz. However, one thing stuck out to me like a sore thumb: the recent apps UI.
S7 Edge Throttling & Thermals: Stress-tests Comparing SD820, 810, 808, A9 & Exynos 7420
We've take the S7 Edge and ran it through some tests while keeping track of its performance and heat. Does this Snapdragon 820 get hot? Find out!
Now that the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge have arrived to consumer hands, we can finally begin exploring the nature of the Snapdragon 820 thanks to our first set of tests.
In the search for ways to protect, accessorize, and personalize; a user has many options. One could choose a case, a “skin”, “armor”, or “wraps.” In fact, the global mobile accessory market is poised to reach a high of $62 Billion in 2017. dBrand is one of the more creative and friendly vinyl skin manufacturers around. In hopes of sharing what they can offer, our friends at dBrand sent us over some skins to have a look at. They offer their skins in six categories: Carbon Fiber, Matte, Metal, Leather, True Color, and Wood. Of course, the metal, wood, and leather aren’t actually made of their respective namesakes – they’re all made of vinyl. Even still, I was surprised by how distinctly different all the different types felt.
Not unlike Nexus devices on Lollipop, Galaxy S6 users have been complaining of ram issues for some time now. Apps don’t seem to stay in memory very long, and there are launcher redraws abound. Ideally 5.1 brings some much needed help as it did with Nexus devices.