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Some Pixel phones unable to display iPhone 7 Plus screenshots properly

Alexandra Arici
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The Google Pixel and Pixel XL have been hailed as some of the best smartphones in 2016. However, the phones have been plagued with a few issues.

For example, some owners have been complaining their phones have problems with LTE band 4 connectivity. You’ve probably also heard of the camera flare issue, which Google said would be fixed by a software update. Well, the latest Pixel related issue seems to involve the iPhone.

According to people discussing the problem on the Google Product Forum, the Pixels seem to unable to display screenshots captured and sent via an iPhone 7 Plus.

pixel-and-pixel-xlThis issue is very specific. The screenshot has to be captured from within an app and not from the device’s home screen. It also has to be sent via Hangouts or SMS/MMS to Google’s Pixel phones. Pixel owners will see a severely distorted image.

The problem does not pop up when the reverse happens – meaning when someone sends a screenshot from the Pixel to the iPhone 7 Plus.

There’s some indication the problem might be caused by an incongruity in the latest Android 7.1 update which doesn’t allow for apt image processing. A Nexus 6 user reported the same happening after he updated to Nougat (most likely via a ROM).

Google has apparently been made aware of the situation, but didn’t comment on the situation. If you are holding on to a Pixel or Pixel XL, is this happening to you too?

Snapdragon 830 still happening, coming in second half of 2017

Alexandra Arici
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Qualcomm announced the Snapdragon 835 not so long ago. The high-end chipset which is based on Samsung’s 10nm FinFET processes, is expected to be making it out on devices next year.

But what about the Snapdragon 830 you might wonder? With the announcement of the Snapdragon 835, Qualcomm seemed all too willing to skip over it. But now a report coming out of China claims the Snapdragon 830 is still going to happen.

The processor is said to be making a debut in H2 2017, so a bit later than the Snapdragon 835. A few of the chipset’s specifications also leaked. We’re told the SoC will take advantage of either six or eight Kyro 200 cores.

snapdragon-835-10-nm-finfet-announcement-pictureIt will also bundle the Adreno 519 GPU and akin to the Snapdragon 835 will be manufactured using the 10nm process. Last but not least, the new silicon piece will come bundled with Cat.12 baseband support.

It appears that in 2017, Qualcomm will continue on its strategy of launching two flagships processor. This year we’ve seen the Snapdragon 820 and Snapdragon 821, and if the rumors are true next year we’re going to see the Snapdragon 835 appear first and then the Snapdragon 830.

It does seem a bit unusual, but bear in mind the Snapdragon 830 is yet to be officially confirmed, so take this info with a hefty dose of salt.

the-powerful-snapdragonThe rumor mill has been whispering that the OnePlus 4, which is reportedly due out in June/July will be among the first to sport a Snapdragon 830 under the hood. If this will indeed be the case, it remains to be seen.

As for the Snapdragon 835, Qualcomm didn’t share too much info about it. Luckily a recent leak shed some light on the matter. The silicone piece is expected to be based on an altered Kyro 200 architecture which takes advantage of four big and four small cores.

The SoC will take advantage of Adreno 540 GPU, an X16 LTE modem and Quick Charge 4.0. Qualcomm also said the new chip will bring a 30% boost in area efficiency and possible 27% increase in performance and 40% decrease in power consumption.

The first devices expected to roll out with a Snapdragon 835 include the Galaxy S8 and Xiaomi Mi 6.

Samsung Galaxy S7 edge found to be safest phone among flagships

Alexandra Arici
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There’s no doubt smartphones have changed the way we live. We can connect with friends around the world, stream video and music and do just about anything with a couple of taps.

But are smartphones all about the benefits of living in an interconnected world? Some don’t think so. Many studies have been published claiming that smartphone overuse can have some potentially life-threatening consequences. According to select research, handsets can damage your brain, your eyesight and even your skin.

However, it’s a matter of debate (to put it mildly) whether that’s really the case, but organizations like the FCC / Federal Communications Commission) are keeping an eye out.

samsung-galaxy-s7-duoAccording to World Health Organization, cell phones are capable of emitting electromagnetic waves that can damage the human body, so the FCC monitors electromagnetic radiation emission levels produced by smartphones available on the market in order to help maintain the safe limits.

The unit by which this is measured is called the Specific Absorb ion Rate (SAR) – which evaluates how much energy is absorbed by the human body when it is exposed to a radio frequency electromagnetic field. Prolonged exposure to electromagnetic radiation is said to lead to a heighten cancer risk.

electromagnetic-emissionWant to know which smartphone on the market is the safest in terms of electromagnetic radiation according to the FCC? Well, according to a report coming from Business Korea, it’s the Samsung Galaxy S7 edge.

The maximum amount of emission allowed by the SAR scale is 1.6w/kg, but the Galaxy S7 edge SAR stands at only 0.264w/kg.

Here’s the top 10 safest smartphones:

  • ASUS ZenFone 3 – SAR 0.278w/kg
  • Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016) – SAR 0.290 w/kg
  • Lenovo Moto Z – SAR 0.304 w/kg
  • OnePlus 3 – SAR 0.394 w/kg
  • Samsung Galaxy S7 – SAR 0.406 w/kg
  • HTC 10 – SAR 0.417 w/kg
  • Sony Xperia XA – SAR 0.473 w/kg
  • Huawei Honor 5X – SAR 0.560 w/kg
  • Samsung Galaxy A3 (2016) – SAR 0.621 w/kg

At the other side of the spectrum here’s the top worst SAR phones:

  • Huawei Honor 8 – SAR 1.5 w/kg
  • Huawei P9 – SAR 1.43 w/kg
  • iPhone 7 – SAR 1.38 w/kg
  • iPhone 7 Plus – SAR 1.24 w/kg
  • Huawei Honor 5C – SAR 1.14 w/kg
  • Sony Xperia X Compact – SAR 1.08 w/kg
  • Sony Xperia XZ – SAR 0.870 w/kg
  • LG G5 – SAR 0.737 w/kg
  • Sony Xperia X – SAR 0.720 w/kg

As you can see Apple’s iPhones don’t fear out so well in terms of SAR, so if you’re worried about electromagnetic radiation you best go with Samsung instead.

While the World Health Organization and government agencies like FCC want to keep electromagnetic radiation emission in check, we’d like to note that in 2015 the European Commission Scientific Committee on the Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks concluded that, overall, epidemiologic studies on cell phone radiofrequency electromagnetic radiation exposure do not show an increased risk of brain tumors or other cancers of the head and neck.

As you can see, experts and clinical studies tend to disagree, but it’s better to be safe (with a Galaxy S7 edge) than sorry.

The best promotions you’ll find for wireless service providers (November 27)

AndroidGuys
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Don’t look now, but we’ve got little more than one month left in the year. As such, this is one of the best times to switch carriers or pick up a new phone. Just about everywhere you look you will find some sort of promotion or discount. Not just phones, but rate plans and accessories, too! Here’s a list of what each of the top five carriers are doing this week.

Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge vs. LG V20 (Smartphone Showdown)

Donovan Jeska
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Something a bit different this time around, AndroidGuys – rather than comparing last year’s model to this year’s, I’m going to pit two high-end juggernauts against one another.

I’m not gonna lie, I’m biased in this particular Showdown. I think the Edge’s curved screen and edge gestures are over hyped and faddy, like 3DTV and Pogs, and will pass as swiftly as it arrived. I like the V20’s adorable little second screen, despite it being ill-placed and underutilized.

I mean, wouldn’t it be more useful at the bottom of the screen, where it can be easily reached with even the Megan Foxiest of thumbs? Wouldn’t a long, thin bar of a screen be better utilized if it doubled as the navbar for Android? When the main screen is off, it could be used a notification ticker. When on, it could be used as the navbar, or a horizontal swipe could take you to the app dock. Hell, they could even have made it AMOLED to make it more battery efficient.

BUT. THEY. DIDN’T.

And I’ve gotten sidetracked again. Anyway. Here’s the Showdown.

Build

5.54oz vs 6.14oz

Glass Body vs Aluminum Body

Not exactly Apples to Apples, here; the S7 Edge is smaller and lighter with a glass body and aluminum frame, while the V20 is larger and heavier with an aluminum body. Rest assured, being flagships of two of the biggest, baddest manufacturers around, both are gof solid build quality.

Screen

s7edge
Gotta admit – it sure is pretty.

5.5″ vs 5.7″ (with a 2.1″ secondary LCD)

534ppi vs 513ppi

Super AMOLED Curved vs IPS LCD

This is kind of a toss-up for me. On the one hand, I love AMOLED screens. Those deep blacks are gorgeous, and the battery life is really improved. On the other, I deeply dislike the Edge’s curved screen and love the V20’s secondary display; so I’m gonna call this a draw, because I’m indecisive. Objectively, however, the S7 Edge has a denser screen with a more unique technology associated with it – it’s also a bit smaller, for those of you with smaller hands.

Internals

Exynos 8890 (2.3GHz) vs Snapdragon 820 (2.15GHz)

4GB RAM

32GB vs 64GB Internal Storage (Expandable)

Relatively comparable, here; though the S7 Edge technically has an advantage in the processor department, the V20 actually comes in with a slightly higher AnTuTu score (135k vs the Edge’s 128k). The V20 comes with 64GB stock internal storage, though both devices have a microSD slot – so storage should never be a problem.

Internal Features

Bluetooth 4.2

802.11ac WiFi

MicroUSB vs USB-C

Curved Display vs Second Screen

v201Let’s be honest – that last one is the one that matters. Both features use a gimmicky technology to display relevant information with the primary display off, though they use very different functionalities to deliver said information. The Edge makes great use of its AMOLED screen by ensuring that only the pixels that are being used are turned on, and the curved screen means that even if the phone is face down, the notification will be visible. In addition, Edge gestures allow a variety of functionalities – that, honestly, can be accomplished with a traditional flat display.

LG’s solution is a little more…hamfisted. It uses a secondary display to show relevant information and notifications when the primary display is off, as well as providing a place for app shortcuts – kinda like a permanent App Dock you’d find on your homescreen. This second screen, however, is not AMOLED, meaning that whenever it’s on, it’s draining battery – even with a solid black background. In addition, it’s not viewable when the phone is face down.

It really comes down to technology preference – I prefer the second display over the gimmicky, hyped-up curved screen, but I wouldn’t fault you for reversing the adjectives there if you so wished.

Battery Life

3600mAh vs 3200mAh

While PhoneArena doesn’t have specific talk times for the S7 Edge – the V20 is rated for 8 hours of talk time – I’m inclined to believe that with a smaller, more efficient screen and a more diversified CPU, the Edge is likely to get more out of a comparable size battery – let alone one that’s 400mAh larger. It should also be noted that the S7 Edge supports Wireless Charging (including the Qi standard), while the V20 does not.

Camera

As I noted in my last Showdown, the V20’s camera is (well, are) a beast. Even at first glance (12mp vs 16mp, 1.7 vs 1.8/2.4 aperture) the V20 tramples all over the S7 Edge, and that’s without taking into account that the V20 has two separate lenses, a near-human FoV, and a camcorder that’s specifically intended to record crystal clear video and sound. LG really outdid itself here (to be fair, the S7 Edge also came out 6 months earlier than did the V20).

Value

$608 vs $799

I was honestly a bit surprised by this; I thought for sure that after six months the S7 Edge would be a bit cheaper, but I guess I should have expected that it’d retain value well – and probably will continue to do so until the S8 is released. Given the obvious camera advantage, larger stock storage, Type C charging port, and second display, I actually think the V20 might be worth a buy over the S7 Edge – at least for the next few months.

Verdict

Pull the trigger.

Save big with these promos and discounts for T-Mobile

AndroidGuys
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Time to purchase a new smartphone? Is this an upgrade from an existing device? We want to help you out either way.

To save you money, we’ve gathered up all of the promotions we could find from T-Mobile. Regardless of where you’re thinking of going for service, or what phone you are looking to pick up, you owe it to yourself to check below.

What follows is a mix of phone, rate plan, and accessory promotions worth checking out. It might not be an exhaustive list, but it’s a good collection of what’s currently offered through T-Mobile.

Although we’ve listed known expiration dates, we have no idea how long some of these other deals will last.

The following start on November 24

  • FREE Samsung Galaxy S7 after 24 monthly bill credits when you trade in a Galaxy S6, Galaxy Note 5 or other eligible device.
  • FREE Gear VR and $50 Oculus app store gift card when you get a Samsung Galaxy S7 (including the free one above) or Galaxy S7 edge.
  • FREE Samsung Tab E or LG Gpad X after 24 monthly bill credits with a T-Mobile ONE tablet plan. You pay only the sales tax!
  • $70 off the UE BOOM 2 wireless speaker (now just $129.99)
  • $30 off the LG Tone Pro 760 Bluetooth headset (now just $39.99)
  • $50 (>80%!) off the mophie Powerstation Mini (now just $9.99)

Save big with these promos and discounts for AT&T

AndroidGuys
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Time to purchase a new smartphone? Is this an upgrade from an existing device? We want to help you out either way.

To save you money, we’ve gathered up all of the promotions we could find from AT&T. Regardless of where you’re thinking of going for service, or what phone you are looking to pick up, you owe it to yourself to check below.

What follows is a mix of phone, rate plan, and accessory promotions worth checking out. It might not be an exhaustive list, but it’s a good collection of what’s currently offered through AT&T.

Although we’ve listed known expiration dates, we have no idea how long some of these other deals will last.

Adventures of J: An “Escape the Room” style game that needs some serious polish

AndroidGuys
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Escape the Room games were a hugely popular genre of puzzle games back in the day when Flash games were all the rage on computers. Your goal was to find clues and items scattered around the area that allowed you to solve puzzles to ultimately escape from a room or collect a treasure of some sort.

There are still several popular games in this genre available on mobile devices (The Room, 100 Doors) and several developers that are devoted to still making some great escape puzzles. Unfortunately, an Android game we’re reviewing, Adventures of J, is overloaded by ads and is plagued by some serious issues that prevent it from being a great game.

  • Developer: Hidden Fun Games
  • Price: Free, $.99 IAP to remove ads
  • Download: Google Play

Adventures of J is a story that starts off with a boy trying to rescue his kidnapped dog, which then turns into preventing a bank heist, a treasure hunt, and many other adventures across the 12 chapters of the game. You’ll find yourself exploring every nook and cranny of the game world to figure out how to advance through the many puzzles in this surprisingly long game.

The Setup

To start off, in order to play Adventures of J, there is a mandatory install of Adobe AIR from the Play Store. After the installation of AIR, you relaunch the app to be greeted by a loading screen, followed by a second loading screen specifically for an unskippable, full-screen ad.

To the most.Once you’re in the game, it starts out with a painfully choppy cut scene. I’m running this game on a Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge, so there isn’t any reason why it should stutter as much as it does aside from a serious lack of optimization from the developer.

The cut scenes themselves are riddled with many grammatical errors. The animation is stiff and dated, showing just how far we’ve come since the days of heavy reliance on Flash. Characters have awkward movements, gliding across the floor on legs that are perpetually straight and move at various speeds. There is a plot, but it doesn’t matter heavily to the playing of the game, which is good because it’s fairly nonsensical.

The Gameplay

The gameplay is what you would expect from a game of this style. You navigate to different screens tapping on objects that will either display some part of a code that needs to be entered somewhere, or that will give you an item, such as keys or wrenches, that allow you to open desk drawers, chests, and doors to more rooms.

screenshot_20161117-100325
One of the better puzzles in Adventures of J

As for the puzzles themselves, most of them are pretty straight forward. You might find a playing card that has four different colored circles arranged on the back, and somewhere nearby you’ll find a computer screen with four colored circles that you’ll have to arrange to match the card.

Most of the puzzles are this easy, but there are a few that had me scratching my head, particularly the more elaborate sliding puzzles, where you’re given a grid full of images and you have to slide them one-by-one into place, being careful to not mess up other parts of the puzzle.

The Rough Spots

The most difficult parts of Adventures of J are the lack of saving progress and the advertisements. J has 12 chapters and allows you to start at the beginning of each chapter, but every chapter is between 30-45 minutes long. This could be remedy easily with a few checkpoints throughout each chapter or a quick save feature, but as it stands now, even if you were just minutes from the end of a chapter, you’ll have to start at the beginning of it if you don’t finish. It happened to me once or twice and is very frustrating.

To add insult to injury, there is an ad banner that runs at the top of the screen constantly and every 5-10 minutes there is a full-screen ad that pops up, forcing you to pause the action for a minute to sit through a video.

There is a walkthrough button conveniently placed at the bottom left of the screen at all times which leads you to a website that has a video walkthrough. On this page are links to other games from the developer and a few ads, but the kicker is there is a 10-second timer that counts down before the walkthrough video is displayed.

Between this, and the constant ads running on the top of the app at all times, and the full-screen unskippable ads that run every few minutes, it becomes quite clear this app is mainly just a money grab disguised as a mediocre game with dated visuals and gameplay.

Conclusion

If you are a die hard escape game fan, then maybe you will get some entertainment out of this. With 12 chapters each about 30 minutes long, you’ve got a lot of content, but with easy to solve puzzles and a sea of constant ads, Adventures of J is more annoying that it is fun. If you’re looking for a fun puzzle game, you should look elsewhere.

Xiaomi is not making any money from smartphones, says it doesn’t matter

Alexandra Arici
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For a company that has been nicknamed China’s Apple, you’d think Xiaomi is making tons of money from smartphone sales. It turns out, it’s not.

According to a fresh report published by Reuters, Xiaomi has actually seen its smartphone sales plummet. For example, last year the company missed its global smartphones targets by 12%. In its home country things were even worse, as smartphone sales declined with a 45%.

xiaomi-mascotAdmits these news, Xiaomi seems quite untroubled. The company’s global vice-president Hugo Barra explained that Xiaomi’s business model wasn’t designed to make money from handset sales anyway. Actually China’s Apple relies on revenue coming from its home connected devices and software ecosystem.

xiaomi-mi-smart-homeBack in April, Xiaomi Vice President Liu De said the firm expects to see smart device revenue to double (up to $1.5 billion) this year.

Hugo Barra went as far as to say:

“Basically we’re giving them to you without making any money… we care about the recurring revenue streams over many years. We could sell 10 billion smartphones and we wouldn’t make a single dime in profits.”

But the future is full of promises for Xiaomi. The company just unveiled a gorgeous new device the Mi MIX and the Mi Note 2 which is compatible with US LTE bands and a cheap Mi5c handset – the first to take advantage of the company’s home grown chip – so sales might pick up again soon.

xiaomi-mi-note-2China’s Apple also announced its first time CES presence scheduled for January 2017. The company might (emphasis on the might) unveil an all-new global product on the grounds in Las Vegas, but this remains to be seen.

Unlike other Chinese competitors like LeEco which have taken the market by storm quite recklessly (given the amount of debit LeEco finds itself in), Xiaomi is planning its next step very carefully, not rushing things into a direction it might later regret. It’s seems like a pretty wise choice.

BLU’s cheap phones found to be secretly sending sensitive user info to China

Alexandra Arici
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When looking to acquire a budget smartphone, most of us probably look towards Chinese manufacturers. But there are some US-based companies that also offer handsets at a bargain. Like BLU.

The handset maker is relatively well known for its affordable products which rarely exceed $200. The phones seem like a good deal for those don’t want to spend a fortune on mobile technology, but are they really worth it?

US security firm, Kyptowire discovered that some BLU smartphone house a so called “backdoor” which allows copies of users’ texts, contacts lists and related to be sent every 72 hours to a software firm based in Shanghai, going by the name AdUps Technologies. What’s more, info about location and app usage was also beamed out every 24 hours.

blu_purexr_backApparently the Shanghai firm collected the data for advertising reasons, but it did so without users’ knowledge or consent

BLU apparently had no clue this is happening. The fault was found in the third-party software BLU utilizes to send out over-the-air (OTA) updates to its products, which was provided by AdUps. For its part the Chinese firm claims the software wasn’t even meant for the US market, but somehow made it through.

Apparently in June, BLU employed a version of the AdUps firmware app on its devices that “inadvertently” included a function designed to flag junk texts and calls.

blu_r1hd_backTo build up more credibility, AdUps claimed Android OEMs ZTE and Huawei are part of its client list, although both companies denied having anything to do with the Chinese software provider.

In the meanwhile, BLU has acknowledged 120,000 of its devices have been affected by the vulnerability. BLU said it has sent out a software update to block the “backdoor” from sending any more sensitive data to China.

Sensing an opportunity, class action lawsuit firm, Rosen Legal has also entered the equation. The firm is inviting customers who have purchased BLU products to file legal action against the smartphone company.

blu-facing-lawsuitThe scandal seems far from over, although BLU has assured its customers that the data picked up by AdUps has been destroyed.

This raises concerns whether extremely cheap handsets are actually safe to use, although bigger companies like HTC have had their shares of security woes A few years back the Taiwanese device maker was accused that its HTC Logger and Carrier IQ tools left the door open to hijacking of personal data.

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