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Would you be interested in a HTC Galaxy Note7 alternative?

Alexandra Arici
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Not so long ago HTC has sent us invites to its mysterious “For U” event. Apparently, the company doesn’t want to share the spotlight with any other device maker, so it has scheduled this press event after CES 2017, on January 12.

We speculated the company might want to unveil the HTC Ocean flagships (that will probably make it into the world as the HTC 11) or the middle-ranger HTC X10 or maybe a smartwatch product.

However, a new leak coming out of Asia suggests an alternative theory we’d really like to see become reality. You see, a few months ago we heard that HTC is gearing up to introduce not one Ocean phone but three: the Ocean Master, Ocean Note and Ocean Smart.

htc-ocean-concept

The most recent leak says that Taiwanese company plans to launch three phones in the first three months of Q1. But whether they are all going to be from the Ocean family or not, it remains to be seen.

The Galaxy Note7 death left a real void in the phablet. So it’s quite possible HTC realized there’s a big opportunity here and the Ocean Note will be launched to appease Galaxy Note7 fans. Given the real lack of phablets with styluses on the market today, it would be a really smart move if HTC were to launch a truly worthy Galaxy Note7 alternative.

htc-ocean-concept-2

Speaking of which, if HTC doesn’t pull out of the bag a Note7 variation there’s still hope for stylus-equipped phablet fans. You see, a recent rumor would have us believe Samsung is entertaining the idea of launching a Galaxy S8 Plus model with a 6-inch display and an external S Pen accessory.

Keep in mind, that all we’ve told you so far is just speculation. None of the tidbits above have been confirmed, so it will remain to be seen whether the HTC Ocean Note proves to be a real product or not. We’ll see on January 12, 2017 so stay tuned to find out!

10 apps to help you keep your New Year’s resolutions

Alexandra Arici
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2

2017 is just around the corner and naturally you already have a full list of resolutions for next year. However, we all know how easy it is to let resolutions fall by the wayside. Luckily we live in the age of technology, so there are a few apps you could employ to help you keep your New Year resolutions. Now all you need to do is think really hard about what you want to achieve next year and check the app list we have put together for you below. Shall we get started?

Eat healthier

01-eat-healthier Yummily is probably the best Android app for foodies who want to learn new recipes. The application features an extensive database or recipes ranging from healthy, gluten-free or Paleo to savory, fried or Mexican. It’s all in there if you’re looking to diversify your meals and assimilate a few cooking secrets.

Yummily lets you create a personal food experience suited to your particular lifestyle. The app pulls new recipes from top cooking websites and food blogs such as Chow, Serious Eats and Steamy Kitchen, so you are in extremely good hands.

Yummily is free for download from the Google Play Store.

Be more productive

02-be-more-productive

Sometimes we’re so immersed in our hectic lives we forget about the important things on our mental check list. The Any.do app allows users to create reminders, events, to-do lists, notes and much more. The app is extremely rich and features and you won’t need to pay a dime to download and install it.

With Any.do you can seamlessly sync across devices and there’s also an extension available for Chrome users, so you can manage your tasks via the Chrome browser. On top of that, the app wants to help you remember great ideas that might go through your head throughout the day. To that end it offers a built-in-speech recognition software that lets you type less and do more with your time. Users can also store images, videos, audio recordings and uploaded files.

Get in shape

03-get-in-shape

Getting in shape can start at home. You don’t have to run to the nearest gym and sign up with a 2-month pass you don’t know if you’re going to end up using. Instead download the 7 Minute Workout app for Android and start training from the comfort of your own home.

The 7 Minute Workout app delivers a series of 12 exercises to be done for 30 seconds with 10 second break intermissions between them. You don’t need any fancy gym equipment, only a wall and a chair. It’s the perfect alternative for busy bees who still want to lose weight, get a flat tummy and strengthen those abdominal muscles.

Banish stress

04-be-more-relaxed

Stress is an inevitable by-product of our extremely busy and complicated lives. That’s why Headspace wants to help you get rid of the tension by teaching you to practice meditation and mindfulness. The app will get you started with a 10 minute basics in meditation crash course and then advances you guided or unguided meditation sessions.

Headspace comes equipped with a personalized progress page, so users can track their progress across time. Frequent users are also awarded rewards for participating in regular meditation sessions. In case you have forgotten to do your daily meditation session, the app will push reminders to keep you on the right path.

Dress better

05-dress-better

The Lookbook app for Android is the number #1 source for fashion inspiration. Browse through the thousands of profiles and find the looks that appeal to you and learn where to buy the particular clothing items you like.

If inspiration strikes you can also make your own profile and start interacting with other users on the website in order to exchange fashion tips and tricks. Immerse yourself into the wonderful world of fashion and start planning your New Year outfit already with Lookbook.

Learn something new everyday

06-learn-something-new

Experiencing art is said to help to decrease levels of stress and activates parts of the brain associated with pleasure and contemplation. Daily Art delivers your daily dose of art, while also providing you with some back history in the process.

Do you know why van Gogh cut his ear or who is the women often depicted in some of Dali’s most popular paintings? The app will tell you that, while letting you relax. Daily Art offers a perfect combo, excellent for busy knowledge seekers.

Travel more

07-travel-more

Travel enriches life, so in 2017 travel to a country you never been before, experience its culture and learn about its traditions. But in order to do that you’ll need to find a cheap flight to get you to your next travel destination.

That’s where Hopper comes in handy. The app will look out for when flights to a specific destination become available and push a notification to let you know. It will also notify you of instant price drops and rises.

Hopper can predict the best times to fly and buy, so you know when the cheapest flights become available, so you can purchase immediately. Hoping to go to Berlin next year? Open up Hopper and let the app know of your plans.

Be more organized

08-be-more-organized

Time is one of the most precious resources we have at our disposal, so spend it wisely. For example, why spend hours hopping between websites trying to find the latest stories and articles? Download Feedly for Android and get everything organized. The mobile app allows users to merge different interfaces into a scrollable news feed that delivers the latest information right on your mobile phone.

You can sign up for topical updates from a variety of blogs and websites or add custom RSS subscriptions too. Get all your news from one place and save time with Feedly.

Sleep better

09-sleep-better

Insomnia is an affliction plaguing a lot of people. Luckily, apps like Pzizz use new developments in technology to help sleep deprived individuals get a good night sleep. Pzizz has been praised even by popular fantasy author J.K Rowling, so if you’re intrigued we invite you to try it out in 2017.

Pzizz uses the science of psychoacoustics to deliver a sleep-optimized mix of music, voiceover and sound effects, designed to calm your mind and assist you in the process of falling asleep. Sleep modules vary between 10 minutes and 12 hours and there’s also a built-in alarm embedded into the app.

Train your brain

10-train-your-brain

Keep your brain active by playing small but complex games on a daily basis in order to optimize its function. Lumosity is one of the best apps that deliver daily brain workouts to your mobile. The app is equipped with 25+ brain games designed to train 5 core cognitive abilities.

Based on your performance, Lumosity also delivers a detailed analysis of your game play in order to shed light on your strengths and weaknesses and suggest ways for improvement.

These LG G6 renders show LG isn’t afraid of changing it up

Alexandra Arici
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Albeit betting a lot on modularity, the LG G5 didn’t prove to be too popular with consumers. By contrast the Moto Z and its Moto Mods were a lot better received than the LG G5 which failed to add more than a gimmick via its modular body, while compromising a lot in other areas. That’s probably why in 2017 LG will be moving away from its dreams of producing a truly modular phone and will be going back to the classic smartphone approach.

lg-g6-top-side-view

The latest LG G6 renders based on factory CAD images prove this without leaving much room for interpretation. When LG is going to unveil the G6 in a few months, it will come featuring the same candybar design characteristic of most devices these days.

lg-g6-front

The LG G6 showcased in the images looks premium and sleek, exactly what one would expect from a 2017 flagship. Now in terms of specs, the phone should come boasting a 5.3-inch display with 1,440 x 2,560 pixel resolution and Qualcomm’s new-gen Snapdragon 835 chipset nestled under the bonnet.

As you can see, the LG G6 will continue the legacy of premium LG phones and should employ the services of dual cameras on the back plus a dual-tone flash.

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On the back and visible in the images, we also have a fingerprint scanner which will apparently double as a power button.

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Unlike other top Android OEMs like HTC and soon Samsung, LG won’t be removing the 3.5 mm headphone jack from the LG G6, which means you’ll be able to use older headphones with the device without needing an additional adapter.

lg-g6-top-view

As you can see the LG G6 is slowly starting to take form. The flagship is said to be due out a bit earlier than expected, sometimes in early March before the Galaxy S8 monster has a chance to hit retail shelves. Naturally LG is afraid the Galaxy S8 will completely overshadow the G6 like the S7 obscured the G5.

lg-g6-dual-camera-view

Samsung Galaxy S8 might come with an S Pen external accessory

Alexandra Arici
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1

The premature death of the Galaxy Note7 upset a lot of customers and obviously Samsung wants to make it up to its loyal fan base. That’s why we expect the next-gen Galaxy S8 flagships to be a pretty massive phone bundling a lot of awesome specs and features.

According to a new report coming out of China it seems Samsung is adamant to offer the Galaxy S8 as an obvious replacement for the Galaxy Note7. If we’re to believe the latest hearsay Samsung will launch the Galaxy S8 with a S Pen external accessory.

the-mighty-s-pen

This means the Pen won’t be integrated within the phone like in the case of the Galaxy Note7, but will be sold separately for an additional price-tag. Previous rumors claim Samsung will launch a Galaxy S8 Plus model with a 6-inch display, so it seems quite evident that Samsung wants to fill the void left by the Note7 with at least one of its upcoming Galaxy S8 models.

If this information makes you a bit concerned about the future of the Note series, don’t be. Samsung already hinted a next-gen Note8 is coming when it announced the Galaxy Upgrade program in South Korea. Customers in the county were invited to trade in their Galaxy Note7 for a Galaxy S7 or Galaxy S7 edge in order to be eligible to get either the Galaxy S8 or Note8 at half the price.

writing-with-the-s-pen

As far as we know, the S Pen Galaxy S8 variant might end up being released only in South Korea. Samsung is still reluctant to push a crippling update for the Note7 in the country like it is doing in the US, since there are many customers still using the phablet who consider switching to a Galaxy S7 a downgrade. But if a Galaxy S8 with S Pen gets released, these users will probably be happy to switch.

Oukitel’s next phone to be the budget-friendly C5 Pro

AndroidGuys
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The details for Oukitel’s next handset are coming to light as the phone looks to be nearing its release. Recent reports indicated the device would launch with a full-metal frame and unbreakable display. Today we’ve got pretty much all of the specifications for the handset. Assuming they’re correct, it appears the phone will be a low-cost unlocked experience whenever it debuts.

Our understanding is that the so-called C5 Pro will carry a price tag of around $75 which sounds about right to us. Considering what you can get for around $100-$150 you’d want these hardware specs at a minimum.

Basic Parameters:

  • Color: White, Black, Gold, Silver
  • Dimensions & Weight: 144.6*72*9.3m,165g
  • OS: Android 6.0 Marshmallow
  • Chipset: MT6737 Cortex A53 octa-core 1.3GHz
  • Memory: 2GB RAM+16GB ROM, 32GB expandable
  • Display: 2.5D curved
  • Frame：zinc alloy metal
  • Back: texture printed

Display:

  • Size: 5.0 inch, tough screen, 2 points capacity screen
  • Resolution: HD 1280*720 pixels
  • Camera:
    • Primary: 5.0 MP AF/8.0MP(interpolated), flash light
    • Secondary:2.0MP AF/5.0MP (interpolated)
    • Battery: 2000mAh, 5V/1A charger

Connectivity:

  • Network: GSM: 850/900/1800/1900MHz; WCDMA: 900/2100MHz; FDD: Band 1/3/7/20
    SIM Card: 2 micro SIM+1TF card
  • WLAN: 802.11a/b/g/n/, Support Hotspot, support turbo download(wifi and mobile data works together for downloading large files)
  • Bluetooth: Yes, Bluetooth 4.0
  • GPS: GPS/AGPS/GLONASS
  • NFC: No
  • USB: Micro-USB 5PinEarphone jack: 3.5mm
  • OTG: No
  • OTA: Yes
  • FM Radio: Yes

We’re not exactly sure when the Oukitel C5 Pro will make its debut but with CES and Mobile World Congress coming up, it’s the time of year when many companies introduce their new models.

The Witti Beddi – A smart alarm clock worth your dough

Matt Adams
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Everything is getting smart these days. Smart phones, smart appliances, smart… alarm clocks? Yep, alarm clocks too. Because, why not, right? We’re working our way to a smart home right now with the addition of Google Home, a Nest Thermostat, and Phillips Hue and the Witti Beddi fits right in too.

The iOS and Android Apps are really powerful. The app serves as your dashboard and the Beddi is more of a tool to execute what you set up from within the app. Do you want your Nest Thermostat to start heating your house a half hour before your alarm goes off? How about your smart coffee maker started making your coffee for the day so you wake up the wonderful smell of fresh coffee? You can do that with the Beddi.

The front of the Beddi houses a nice fabric grill where the time sits. It’s a bit faint, but that’s a positive since you’ll most often be looking at this when it’s dark in your room. If you have light colored animals, be prepared to keep a vacuum or lint roller nearby because the fabric holds onto hair as you can see below.

witti-beddi-front
Keep a lint roller near. My white dog’s hair shows up noticeably.

On the bottom of the clock are LEDs that are excellent for setting mood lighting. The Beddi doubles as a Bluetooth speaker, so if you want some lighting effects going on as you’re listening to a Monstercat Electronic Mix before bed, you can make that happen very easily.

The rear of the devices houses several important lights and ports. The large window sits in front of a light designed to emulate a sunrise. Ten minutes before your alarm is set to go off the light will gradually rise to wake you up in a more gentle fashion than just a blaring alarm.

witti-beddi-rear

In practice, I’ve found that it didn’t make much difference for how easy I woke up in the morning, but I blame my weird sleeping patterns for that, rather than the Witti Beddi. If it doesn’t help you, you can disable it like I did. In addition to the light are a few USB ports, an aux port, and a power adapter port. Having an extra USB port for a smartwatch or tablet is very convenient, as is the slot that sits on top of the Beddi to securely place your phone.

If you want just a basic alarm clock you can control your phone, the Beddi is great. But, it also offers a lot more if you feel like diving in. Baked into the functionality of the hardware and software is the ability to call an Uber with the press of a button. I don’t use Uber myself, but I don’t think this is really that much more convenient than just opening the app and selecting your options from what friends who use the Uber app tell me.

One of my favorite features of the Beddi is the ability to wake up to your favorite Spotify playlist. I’d love to see Witti extend this functionality to Google Play Music too or even YouTube since I use these more than Spotify. Witti also includes a white noise generator in the app that you can play through the Beddi. I fall asleep faster and sleep deeper when I have either white noise or weather noise going on so I really appreciate this. If you’re not a fan of Spotify or white noise, the FM radio built into the Beddi works just fine too.

To some, $99 for an alarm clock is a tough sell. But honestly, if you’re one of those people you probably don’t have things like a Nest Thermostat or Phillips Hue lights that expand the functionality of the Beddi. I don’t think you necessarily have to have those to justify the price of the Beddi because it’s a damn cool piece of technology on its own. I use it on a daily basis because it makes my life easier. I don’t have to worry about my phone dying or freezing and not being woken up. I can easily turn on my lights or if I had a smart coffee maker, have my coffee ready to go in the morning. Those features are really valuable to me.

I’d like to see Witti to continue to innovate and add more functionality. I can justify the price, but it would be a lot easier if I could tell my Google Home to set an alarm for 7 AM and my Beddi starts going off instead of my phone.

Witti makes excellent products and this doesn’t feel like a first generation product from them, even though it is. Is it perfect? No, but no product out there is perfect. I would spend my own money on it though and if you’ve come into to some Christmas cash, you should definitely give the Witti Beddi a look.

Product Link: Amazon | Witti

What will happen to Cyanogen OS phones?

Alexandra Arici
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Over the weekend Cyanogen Inc. announced it will shut down all its services and OS by the end of the year. Which raised a serious question: what are Cyanogen OS smartphone users going to do from now on?

No official answer was provided by Cyanogen and most of smartphone makers that offer Cyanogen OS infused smartphones have remained silent until now. Except for one.

We’ll detail the solution offered by this particular device maker soon enough, but before that we want to hint at two other possible alternatives. The most obvious one would be to start looking for a new smartphone. Yes, it implies additional costs but at least you’ll put the Cyanogen disappointment behind you.

zuk-z1

Another alternative would be to start learning how to switch to a CyanogenMod ROM (now called LineageOS). You see the team behind CyanogenMod hopes the transition to LineagesOS will be a smooth one, with users being allowed to update without having to reformat.

However, you need to keep in mind that LineageOS is not a commercial product and is managed by a community of developers revolving around co-founder Steve Kondik.

A third alternative has been provided by Cyanogen OS smartphone maker, Wileyfox. The company already announced its strategy following Cyanogen’s collapse.

wiley-fox-cyanogenos-phones

The device maker says it plans to bring their entire handset portfolio onto Android Nougat, the latest version of Android available on the market. Wileyfox promises a smooth transition where they will continue to deliver constant and consistent software and OS updates. More information on matter is going to be shared with users soon enough.

This strategy might be taken up by other companies offering Cyanogen OS smartphones such as ZUK or Micromax, but we are yet to see an official statement from them. We’ll update you as they become available.

Xiaomi accused of trying to cover up incident involving burning Redmi phone

Alexandra Arici
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2

One of the biggest stories in tech this year was undoubtedly the Samsung Galaxy Note7 disaster. We all know what happened, Samsung released a potentially dangerous phablet into the world and some units ended up catching fire and exploding.

What followed next was an unprecedented move from Samsung which issued a global recall of the device. Finally, the company had no choice but to kill off the device altogether. However, the Galaxy Note7 is not the first or the last phone to catch fire. In recent days a user reported on Reddit that their Galaxy S6 edge+ caught on fire.

At first glance it might seem only Samsung phones seem to be afflicted by this fiery bug. But that’s certainly not the case. For example, according to information coming out of China, a Xiaomi Redmi phone allegedly caught on fire without warning.

burned-xiaomi-redmi

The handset was purchased as a fit on March 1, but on December 21 the device inexplicably started overheating while charging and burned up although the charger was immediately removed.The phone is said to have been charged via the original phone charger.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 buttons computer

The original Chinese report claims the phone in question is the Redmi Note 3.

The owner of the Redmi phone contacted Xiaomi and managed to get a full refund plus an additional $84 compensation. But here’s where it gets interesting. According to the report, Xiaomi had the owner sign a confidentiality agreement (which forbade the customer from revealing the incident to the media) to access said compensation. The agreement was later deemed invalid by the owner’s legal representatives.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 face computer

It’s quite suspicious that Xiaomi would try and cover up such an important matter. However we should take this report with a grain of salt, although the Chinese publication shares an image of a burned Xiaomi phones with us.

While the burned Redmi report may or may not be true, there are a few steps you can take to ensure your phone doesn’t overheat like using the right charger, unplugging the device once its charged, charging the phone in a safe place (not on the mattress or such) or removing the case when you charge.

CES 2017 is coming, so what new phones can we expect?

Alexandra Arici
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0

CES is one of the biggest electronics tradeshows in the world which takes places each year in January in Las Vegas. The most important names in tech make an appearance at the event to unveil their latest products and give us a glimpse of what’s to come. A few years ago, top device makers used to save their best devices for CES, but in recent years the spotlight has gravitated towards smaller manufacturers.

Now most Android OEMs prefer to launch their flagships at MWC. Samsung for example, usually hosts an Unpacked event in Barcelona, during which it pulls off the veil its latest generation Galaxy S flagship, while reserving CES for some more undistinguished announcements. Nevertheless, CES remains an event to watch out for. After all, smaller device makers might surprise us with interesting announcements and experimental technologies. And it’s not all about smartphones anyway.

While the rumor mill hasn’t revealed all that much about what to expect at CES 2017, we managed able to put together a list of what we think might be the most interesting smartphone launches during the event.

ASUS

asus-ces-2017-invite

Yes, most phone makers usually prefer to unveil their new flagships during MWC, but some companies do come to CES ready to unleash new handset products. It’s the case of ASUS. The company has already sent out invites for its “Zennovation” media event in Las Vegas and we expect at least two phones to make an appearance into the wild.

According to previous rumors, ASUS is gearing up to launch a new Project Tango phone. Following Lenovo’s Phab 2 Pro, ASUS also wants to get onboard of the AR bandwagon. AR will be very hot next year, so ASUS wants to make sure it offers something along these lines. Hopefully the device dubbed ZenFone AR will offer better specs than Lenovo’s average handset.

On top of the ZenFone AR, ASUS might also unveil the ZenFone 3 Zoom – a photo-centric Zhandset. According to the rumor mill, the device will bundle a Snapdragon 625 processor, an 13MP frontal snapper and a main dual-camera setup plus a hefty 4,850 mAh battery.

LG

lg-k10

LG has dispersed some of the mystery surrounding its CES event. The company already announced a lineup of mid-range phones which will be put on display on the grounds in Las Vegas.

While the K10, K8, K4 and K3 handsets don’t offer anything spectacular in terms of specs they are decent phones that will probably come with affordable price-tags. As for the K10 and K8 they can be considered the first budget-friendly phones to be launched with Android 7.0 Nougat out of the box. LG has also prepared the LG Stylus 3, a middle-range phablet coming with a smart stylus.

Apart from these not-so-exciting phones, LG has also teased something more futuristic headed for CES 2017 – the new PJ9 Bluetooth speakers which can “hover in midair”.

lg-pj9-bluetooth

The floating capabilities are due to the so-called Levitation Station which houses a powerful set of electromagnets. But what’s even more interesting is that when the PJ9 battery starts to wear off, the speaker will automatically descend towards the Levitation Station and charge itself. We’re pretty excited to see this piece of technology in action at CES 2017.

Huawei

huawei-honor-magic-front-and-back

Remember that at CES 2016, Huawei announced the Mate 8 flagship. According to the rumor mill, in a few days the Chinese device maker is expected to go on stage again at CES 2017 and unveil something under the Honor banner.

It’s just a speculation at this point, but maybe the world’s third smartphone manufacturer is looking to introduce its latest phone concept, the Honor Magic which was unveiled in China not so long ago.

The phone features a unique curved design and comes bundled with a host of AI features that will make using the phone extremely intuitive. Huawei is looking to make an impression on the US market and the Honor Magic can easily attract the attention of the pickiest customers.

ZTE

zte-project-csx-smartphone-colors

Remember ZTE’s Project CSX – the eye-tracking, self-adhesive handset? Well it’s very likely ZTE will put it on display at CES 2017.

The company has been hosting a competition asking fans to help name the device. The winner will be announced during the tradeshow, so it makes sense to assume the phone will also be showcased for the first time.

The device should feature premium specifications like a QHD display, Snapdragon 835, 6GB of RAM and Android 7.0 Nougat out of the box.

ZTE has been trying to impress the US crowd for some time now, so maybe with the Project CSX it will manage to get everyone’s attention. ZTE might also showcase an alternative to the defunct Nexus smartphone featuring a clean Android version. Maybe. We’ll have to wait and see.

BlackBerry

blackberry-mercury

BlackBerry might be done manufacturing smartphones, but that doesn’t mean we won’t see new phones bearing the Canadian company’s logo soon enough. TCL has taken over device production and will be coming at CES 2017 to launch a new BlackBerry device.

In all possibility, TCL will probably unveil the so-called “Mercury” device, which has leaked a few times. The phone should feature a touchscreen and also the iconic QWERTY keyboard. BlackBerry’s popularity has been decreasing steadily in the past few years, so it will be interesting to see how the new TCL-made model is received.

Sony

sony-xperia-x-2016

Sony has been pretty quiet lately, but the company has scheduled a press event at CES 2017 on January 4. And according to a rumor dating back from November, it might be possible the company will unveil a new phone, quite possibly the much anticipated Xperia X2?

Of course, Sony might limit itself to just unveiling a bunch of new 4K TVs or share some PlayStation novelties with us. We’ll see in a few days.

Controlling your new WiFi thermostat with Google Home [How-To]

AndroidGuys
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2

We are well established in the age of technology at this point. Many of us, myself included, want technology to work for us an ultimately make our lives less complicated so that we can spend time doing the things we want to do instead of the things we have to do. With this how-to we take one giant step in that direction.

Controlling your WiFi enabled thermostat with Google Home is a great way to manage your household without having to pick up a device or even leave the room. Saving time and not taking you away from the family time, or videogame you may be enjoying

Prerequisites:

There are a few important things that you must have for this to work

  1. You must have a Google Home
  2. You must have a Nest thermostat or other Smart Things enabled wireless thermostat
  3. You must have a Google account

Setup:

  1. Open the Google Home app
  2. Tap the menu button in the top left corner of the screen
  3. Tap Home Control
  4. Tap the + sign in the bottom right corner to add a new thermostat
  5. Tap the name of the provider you will use to connect your thermostat (Nest or Smart Things)
  6. Nest
    1. Read and tap continue screen on the permissions
    2. Sign in to your Nest account, tap continue
    3. Choose which Nest Home you would like connected to Google Home. You may only have one Home connected to a singel Google Home account (sorry for those people that are lucky enough to have more than one house)
  7. Smart Things
    1. Enter your account information and tap Log In
    2. Select the Thermostat you would like to connect to your Google Home and tap Authorize

Thermostat Identification:

As always, organization is key. You can name your rooms/thermostats to help better control your temperature.

  1. In the Devices tab, find your thermostats that are connected to your Google Home
  2. Select the thermostat you would like to set a name for
  3. Tap the Set a nickname option
  4. Type in your desired nickname (i.e. downstairs)
  5. Tap OK.

In the Device details option you can now see that the thermostat has a new nickname. This is the easy way to identify your device with Google Home. Google has a list of simple commands you can say to adjust your temperature quickly with your voice, and additional setup instructions.

We hope you enjoy making your life easier and spending your new free time doing what you want.

Loving your new tech toy? Integrated it into Google Home or Amazon Echo/Dot? Leave a comment below on what your new toy is.

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