Starting on November 15, 2016 AT&T will be launching a new protection program in select markets. This new protection program works hand-in-hand with AT&T’s current insurance program but focuses on same-day screen repair. The screen repair service will cost $89 (applied as a deductible with existing insurance) and will initially only cover certain Samsung and Apple phones.
This new program is being launched in conjunction with Asurion as it uses Asurion-certified technicians to do the same-day screen repair. Same-day service is not guaranteed and certain colors of phones and specific models may not be serviceable. Initial markets that will be covered are limited to larger cities, but AT&T will add more cities over time. To view a full list of areas and more details, visit AT&T’s protection information page here.
Devices that are eligible for this extended insurance are listed below:
More devices should be supported in the coming months
With cracked screens being the number one claimed incident for all smartphones, AT&T is honing in on the insurance service market by collaborating with Asurion. Like any insurance, consumers will have to weigh the negatives and positives of this plan to determine if the extra protection is worth the additional cost.
Today we received some great news from UMi; Android N is on the advanced stages of development for the UMi Plus and will be rolled out soon! The company just sent us a video where you can already see it in action, welcome news for many users who ask support and updates from Chinese brands.
Before going with the video, let’s have a small recap of the specs of the phone which houses it: the UMi Plus has a very nice build quality, it uses Helio P10 Octa Core processor, has 4GB Samsung RAM memory and 32GB (expandable) internal storage.
The UMi Plus is designed with 6000 series of aerospace-level aluminum materials and features a 5.5-inch Sharp panel with 1920×1080 resolution. Moreover, it’s covered by a 2.5D arc glass. UMi Plus’ fingerprint scanner has an unlocking speed of only 0.1s, or lightning quick.
The front-side camera comes in at 5.0-megapixels while the rear one is a 13-megapixel shooter with SAMSUNG3L8 PDAF sensor. The massive 4,000mAh 4.35V battery also supports PE+ fast charging technology, thanks to the USB Type-C port.
Now, back to Android 7, we see it in action in the video below:
As we can see, one of the first improvements seen is the brand new quick menu, revamped and tweaked with new features.
Another big improvement is on camera department: With the new Android 7, UMi was able to further enhance the quality of the 13-megapixel Samsung sensor on board, which now gives improved results in all conditions.
Up-and-coming Chinese device maker ZTE has announced it is opening pre-orders in the US for its newest budget smartphone, the Axon 7 Mini.
The device was unveiled at IFA 2016 in Berlin last month and offers an attractive set of specs for only $300.
While the ZTE Axon 7 is the company’s flagship coming in with specs powerful enough to take on the Samsung Galaxy S7, the Axon 7 Mini represent a worthy alternative for those who don’t want to spend a fortune on a smartphone.
The Axon 7 Mini features a 5.2-inch AMOLED 1080p display which isn’t exactly small, but given that the Axon 7 takes advantage of a 5.5-inch screen we suppose the name makes sense.
Other key features include 3GB of RAM, 32GB of internal storage (expandable via microSD card up to 128GB), dual-front facing speakers, a 16MP main camera plus an 8MP frontal snapper, a headphone jack, and a dual-SIM card slot.
The phone is powered by a Snapdragon 617 processor – a chipset designed for wallet-friendly handsets like this. There’s also a 2,705 mAh battery with Qualcomm quick charge 2.0 keeping things alive and running.
The ZTE Axon 7 Mini also stands out due to its all-metal body and striking design that adds an overall premium feeling to this affordable device.
If the ZTE Axon 7 Mini has caught your attention, you should know the phone can be ordered in the US for $300 from Amazon, Best Buy, B&H, New Egg and ZTE’s own online shop.
Customers can pick up the phone in platinum gray or ion gold, although the latter will be exclusive to Best Buy for the first two months.
Samsung’s Galaxy Note7 disaster continues to make headlines, in the wake of the company announcing it will cease production of the dangerous phablet. Yes, the Galaxy Note7 is dead, but the fact raises an important question: what does this mean for the future of the Galaxy Note brand?
Contrary to what some people might think, Samsung’s biggest problem right now isn’t actually losing billions, but the huge blow it took to its reputation. So will consumers be able to trust Samsung products from now on, most importantly future Galaxy Note products? It’s quite a delicate matter to consider.
Right now we’re in the middle of a giant which hunt, where major tech news outlets are throwing rocks at Samsung for being a lousy company that allowed products as dangerous as the Galaxy Note7 to go on the market. But, let’s face it all this hype will probably blow off in a few months, once the sensational wears off.
In the meanwhile Samsung needs to get at the bottom of the problem, figuring out once and for all what is it that made the phones go up in flames. Having a solid explanation to offer for why the handsets overheated, should be Samsung’s first step towards regaining customers’ trust.
Next, there’s the issue of what Samsung is supposed to do with the Note brand and everyone has an opinion on the matter. Well if you ask me, the handset maker could try putting off the launch of a new Galaxy Note phone for a few years, or re-brand whole lineup, giving it a new, squeaky clean name. But there’s another – very drastic – alternative which involves basically killing off the entire brand. It’s a route the company might take if it wants to set some healthy limits between the Note and the S phone lines. But why would it want that?
There’s no doubt the Galaxy Note7 disaster will have repercussions on existing Samsung products and even upcoming models from different lines. For the time being the Korean tech giant, it’s doing its best to keep its other Galaxy premium line away from the scandal. But it’s not easy.
You see the average consumers just think of Samsung premium smartphones as “Galaxy” handsets, they don’t really differentiate between the S Galaxy and Note lineups. Samsung is well aware of that, so it has been sending messages to Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge owners to remind them their phones are safe and should not be returned.
This jumbled up perception might become a negative influencing factor when people go out to buy a new Samsung smartphone or upgrade from the S6 or lower. In a few years, all people will remember is that Samsung released a faulty Galaxy phone at some point, which means the stigma will be inherited by the whole Galaxy lineup. Consumers will keep away from Galaxy phones, just to be on the safe side of things.
There are some who believe that in order to keep the premium Galaxy S brand from sinking alongside the Note one, Samsung should just kill off the Galaxy Note brand altogether and focus on the S family.
For example, the Korean Herald run an article saying Vice Chief of the Korea-Insight Institute, Kim Duk-jin believes Samsung will be better off without the Galaxy Note. He claims the brand will always be a reminder of the huge blunder that happened in 2016.
For its part, the Korean tech giant is trying its best to keep its customers from leaving. The company announced it is now offering $100 credit to Galaxy Note7 users willing to return their phablet and opt to get another Galaxy phone (like the Galaxy S7) in return.
By contrast, those who have had it with Samsung and wish to migrate to another smartphone brand are to be awarded only $25 when they dispense of the faulty phone. Samsung hopes this offer will be enough to keep disillusioned Note7 users hooked to its products. And it might be.
You see, Samsung has an important thing going for it – its products have become so deeply ingrained in the everyday life of its users, some of them might have quite a hard time making the transition to another, unfamiliar brand. We’re not talking pure brand loyalty, but the force of habit is a powerful energy at play in the human psyche.
All in all, it’s still remains to be seen whether Samsung will go so far as to kill off a lineup that has proved to be very popular with consumers over the years or if it will choose to bet on customer’s capacity to forgive and forget. I’m voting for the latter, since I don’t really believe obliterating the Galaxy Note brand from existence, will magically restore consumer fealty. Samsung needs to find another way to keep the Galaxy S name clean while pushing to redeem its phablet lineup.
Now that Samsung has killed off the Galaxy Note7, its main concern is to get at the bottom of the whole overheating batteries mystery.
While the investigation is ongoing, it has been revealed via a report from the Wall Street Journal, that Samsung has been testing phone batteries, including those bound for the Note7 in one of its own internal labs before putting them on the US market.
While Samsung’s testing does ensure its products are approved by the US Wireless Industry Group (the CTIA), other manufacturers like Apple or Lenovo use one of the 28 external labs that are certified by the CTIA, to verify the safety of their products. Other device makers like Motorola choose to conduct these tests both internally and externally.
The testing is done to determine whether the parts comply with the standards put in place by the IEEE or Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers. Now the association claims Samsung is the only tech manufacturer self-testing its batteries.
Manufacturers test batteries on their own, but also inside the devices in order to see how they behave while charging or when a phone call is incoming.
Some experts in the battery testing industry have argued that while self-testing could easily lead to a conflict of interests, it’s not uncommon for manufacturers to prefer in-house facilities, as it allows them to better protect sensitive info related to these products.
A Samsung spokesperson told the Wall Street Journal the company’s internal testing didn’t result in finding any issue with the Note 7 batteries, both the original models and the replacement units. The Korean tech giant has been testing phone batteries in-house ever since 2009, so the world assumed it knew what it was doing.
Finally, in the wake of the Note7 affair, Samsung has announced it has decided to bring forth significant changes when it comes to testing the quality and safety of its products. Nevertheless, this latest piece of information might cast another dark shadow on Samsung’s already soiled reputation.
The People’s Operator, a mobile virtual network operator that uses both GSM and CDMA technologies, has launched a new rate plan. Available immediately, the Infinity plan gives customers unlimited data for as low as $55 per month. What’s the catch? Well, there are a few things worth noting.
For starters, the Infinity option is only available to customers who have CDMA phones. This means it applies to those of you who have a Sprint, Verizon, or prepaid phone through one of their respective services. Otherwise, you will have to purchase a new handset to take advantage of the deal.
Also worth pointing out, the plan normally goes for $59.99 but the five dollar monthly savings comes when you enroll in automatic payments. The Auto Pay credit is taken off immediately each month you agree to let them automatically process your payment.
Last, and likely not a real issue for most people, the Infinity plan does cap the 4G LTE speeds once the threshold of 50GB of data is crossed. Doing so results in slower, throttled speeds for the remainder of the bill cycle. We wager to guess that not too many of the TPO subscriber base will find this problematic.
We’ve tested and reviewed the service offered by The People’s Operator and found it to be a worthy alternative to more pricey carriers. And, given it uses the same networks that the tier-one providers use, you can expect equal coverage. Our favorite part of TPO, though, has to be the percentage of our monthly bill which is allocated to a charity of our choice.
The Galaxy Note7 is dead and buried but that doesn’t mean Samsung is not trying to preserve its memory. According to some Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 owners writing on the xda-developers forum, Samsung is in the process of rolling out a software update meant to port some of the Note7’s exclusive features.
The Korean tech giant is attempting to make the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge seem more attractive, especially to users who had to part with their phablet recently.
As you probably known by now, Samsung has announced it will be offering $100 credit towards the purchase of a different phone from its garden and for premium users the Galaxy S7 or Galaxy S7 Edge seems the obvious choice.
So from to onward Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge users will be able to take advantage of the always-on display setting, along with a bunch of new customization options. For example, owners will notice the update replaces two of the existing calendar options with a new one.
The always-on display setting can also show you the currently playing music track. A new digital clock feat allows users to add their own custom text signature, letting them choose fonts and preferred colors.
However, bear in mind that a few things aren’t functioning properly after this update including notifications from Samsung’s own email app. Some users have been reporting higher battery drain after the update, so proceed with caution.
If you’re still holding on to Note7 handset, we’re taking the opportunity to remind you that you can exchange it for another Samsung phone, including the premium Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge. Despite not bringing S Pen functionality to the table, the two handsets are still some of the best Android phones available on the market.
X-CORE. Galactic Plague. is an extremely familiar feeling “pandemic” game created by a Russian indie team. X-CORE takes the many virus and bacterium popular with the game type and recasts them into a variety of alien species looking to kill or enslave the planet.
Setup
You can find X-Core. Galactic Plague. for free in the Google Play Store. After download and installation are complete, you are ready to begin playing. Upon launching the game, you will cycle through a few load screens before finding yourself in the middle of a mildly confusing game set up. The lack of a main menu means you are either in a game or in a setup menu to begin a new one. This is my first real problem with the game. The lack of menu or explanations makes it so there is no clearly defined way to continue a saved game, no stats or perk charts to strategize with, and no menu to adjust settings.
Gameplay
The gameplay found in X-Core. Galatic Plague. is extremely simple, repetitive, and not very well explained. Every player will start out as the “Greys,” a well-balanced race with no leaning towards mobility, power, or influence. Should the player navigate them to victory on the normal difficulty or higher, they will unlock the “Reptiles.” The reptiles have very low mobility, low influence, and a lot of power. There are seven other races for the player to unlock throughout the game in the same way, “beat the game with X on a normal difficulty or better.” The only time we see a move away from this is when the app is looking to sell you two of the alien races via in-app purchases. This lack of diversity makes subsequent playthroughs feel “familiar” and the game quickly lost my attention.
X-Core. Galatic Plague.’s gameplay is extremely similar and yet basic compared to many other pandemic games. You start your alien invasion in a country of your choosing. After that initial invasion, you begin to accumulate Skill Points (SP) which you can use to upgrade your alien force. There are five areas you can spend your accumulated SP:
Mobility – How quickly your alien race can spread
Military Power – How quickly and inconspicuously your aliens can kill people
Influence – How effectively your alien race can brainwash the masses
Awareness – The level of awareness the rest of the globe is to the presence of aliens
Secret Weapon Prevention – Hurt the progress of the secret weapon designed to kill your alien race. (Known as “The Cure” in normal traditional games)
These five categories contribute heavily to your success, but going all out in any one will likely cause your game to end in defeat.
Conclusion
X-Core. Galactic Plague. is a simple game that is fun for three to five playthroughs after you have figured out the basics (which are not explained to you). After this threshold, the game quickly becomes repetitive, and even switching amongst the unlockable races available to the player does nothing to make the game feel fresh. The fact that the game is free does add some value to picking up the app for the afternoon, but I would not suggest investing any money in the in-app purchases.
There’s more to Samsung than the Galaxy Note7-related issues, so today we bring you word that the Korean tech giant has announced it started mass production of its System-on-Chip (SoC) units based on 10nm FinFET technology. The company claims this is an industry-first and that we should expect to see devices taking advantage of the news SoCs starting early 2017.
The announcement comes in the wake of Samsung’s successful mass production of the industry’s first FinFET mobile application processor, in January 2015. The company also stated its second generation 10nm process with performance boost is on target to start mass production in the second half of 2017.
The new 10nm SoCs represent an upgrade from Samsung’s older 14nm process. The technology features an advanced 3D transistor structure alongside improvements in the areas of design enablement and process technology. Samsung’s new process will feature a smaller transistor fin, transistor gate and interconnect smaller than its predecessor, the 14nm node. All in all, it amounts to a 30% total area shrink.
Since smartphones are basically small computers, they require most of the parts we see in old school desktop and laptops in order to function the way we want them to. But unlike desktops and laptops, handset don’t have the same amount of internal space, so silicone makers like Samsung need to make these internal parts as small as possible. That’s why miniaturization is a very important part of SoC development.
Furthermore, according to the press release issued by Business Wire, future 10nm-smartphones can expect to see 27% percent increase in performance or a 40% decrease in power consumption. Which in theory should means customers will be able to enjoy handsets that offer a longer battery life or faster computing power (emphasis on the “or” which indicates the device won’t be able to offer both)
For those of you who aren’t really familiar with SoCs, you should know that a System-on-chip is constructed from several different units. The most important one is the CPU or the central processing unit that can be either single core or multi-core (most premium handsets are of the latter variety). Most processors inside the SoCs are based on ARM technology.
SoCs also come bundling a GPU or a graphic processing unit, needed to handle things like games and a memory unit which helps to perform various tasks on a smartphone. Other components bundled within SoC architecture include video encoders and decoders and possibly a modem.
Now, we should note that different chipset makers take different approaches to designing their SoCs. That’s why two different handsets featuring the same 1GHz processors might not perform equally. The common denominator here is the ARM blueprint, but some companies choose to license ARM’s design and use as it is, while others create their custom CPU using guide lines provided by ARM. Samsung is an example of the latter.
We mentioned above the Samsung successfully completed mass producing the industry’s first FinFET mobile application a year go. But what exactly is FinFET? FinFET (also known as Fin Field Effect Transistor) is a type of non-planar or 3D transistor used in the design of modern processors.
Since planar transistors with length below 20nm seem to be a technology limit with electrical parameters starting to degrade while silicon process variations impact on performance, foundries like Samsung have been looking for workarounds. The main reason behind the degradation is the planar structure itself. And as the rigors of the market continuously push for increase the density of transistors in chip and performance in terms of speed and power consumption, FinFET was designed to resolve these problems by virtue of geometry scaling (3D approach).
Going back to Samsung’s 10nm-related news today, rival foundries like TSMC and Intel have already announced the ramping up of their 10nm process production. As for Globalfoundaries, the company is expected to skip over the 10nm node and go straight to the 7nm process instead. The silicon producer says the latter pushes triple-patterning lithography to its limits, unlike the 10nm process.
Samsung’s 10nm node should make it out on the market in time for the Galaxy S8 release. The handset is rumored to be shipping with Snapdragon 830 in the US, which by the way will be also made by Samsung and based on the 10nm technology. Despite the massive Galaxy Note7 fiasco, Samsung still says it’s on track to release the Galaxy S8 flagship. The new 10nm SoC will certainly help build up hype around the device.
It goes without question that almost all of us still experience dropped calls. I use the nation’s second largest network with AT&T, but in San Diego reception can still be spotty. The network quality has improved vastly over the years, but when I’m on a call in my truck and go through one of San Diego’s many hills, reception can be spotty. Or when I’m out exploring the county looking for a new hike with my dog, at the outskirts, reception can also be spotty in those areas as well.
I make frequent trips from southern California to northern California at least six times a year. I know exactly where my cell signal will drop out on that drive because I have been making those trips for 18 years now.
While spotty reception in areas like that is acceptable for many, there are those of us who need a solid connection all of the time. I have quite a few friends who work in sales and construction where their automobiles are their mobile offices. With the amount of technology at our fingertips, it is essential for those to have access to the internet or solid voice reception to communicate to those who matter most. Whether it’s your family or your customers, dropped calls are a pain in the rear.
There are also thousands of people who go on road trips to explore the continental US where cell reception can be spotty at best, depending on where you are. People who use RVs and campers know first hand just how bad cell signals can be.
Luckily there are options available for boosting your connections for your home or even your automobile. I’ve been using the weboost Drive 4G-M vehicle cell signal booster and haven’t dropped a call or experienced laggy data since.
Design and Setup
The weboost Drive 4G-M is comprised of an amplifier that connects to an outdoor antenna for receiving cell signal, where it then amplifies the signal and sends it out through another antenna in your automobile. It’s powered by a DC power adapter that fits into your car’s cigarette lighter. I’m not an engineer so I can’t explain the process of how it does this process. All that really matters to me is if my cell signal is improved.
A device of this sort looks more intimidating than it actually is. The instructions list six simple steps for installing the booster.
Install the included magnetic antenna on your roof and slide the cord under the door seal
Place the interior antenna next to a place where you normally use your cellphone. In my truck, there is a pocket on the side of the passenger seat which provided the perfect installation spot. You can use the included VELCRO to mount it in another desired location.
weboost recommends installing the 4G-M box in a spot with decent ventilation such as under a seat or under the dash. In my case, I simply installed it under the driver side chair.
Once installed, simply screw the indoor and outdoor antennas into their respective slots.
Then connect the included DC power cable into the 4G-M.
Plug the power adapter into the vehicle’s DC power supply and flip the switch to on.
Total installation time took no more than five minutes.
Does it work?
Absolutely. I am an AT&T customer in north San Diego county. Reception is spotty at times, because I am 25 miles away from the city center and am surrounded by several canyons where signal goes to die. I’ve never gotten good reception at my home, with all of my phones holding at 1-2 bars of reception. However bars aren’t an exact science as manufacturers use different scales to indicate strength. I definitely have spotty reception in my home and need to sit by windows to get the best call quality.
Luckily you can test the exact strength of your reception simply by dialing *3001#12345#* and it will put your phone into test mode. It doesn’t harm your phone to perform this test, so don’t worry about voiding your warranty or anything like that.
My base reading was -114db with one bar of service on an iPhone 7 Plus. I know this is an Android site, but I am in the process of evaluating the 7 Plus’s camera before my Pixel XL arrives. This booster works for all devices, iOS and Android as well as all networks.
Once I flipped the switch, I picked up an additional 25db of power within one minute of powering on the 4G-M.
My signal strength bar rating went up to 4/5 instead of 1/5 that I had as a baseline.
My call quality improved even as I pulled back into my garage which is normally a dead spot for me.
I’ve been using this amplifier for several weeks now, and I don’t have picture evidence to back up signal strength since I can’t use my phone in my hands while on the road. In areas where I typically get two bars, I now get full bars across the board, even on my Sprint MVNO review Samsung Galaxy S6 from TextNow. Where I typically get solid signal, the 4G-M doesn’t over amplify my signal as it regulates itself back down. I drove around town taking several 30 minute long calls just to test out the reliability of this 4G-M and it works as advertised. I then performed the same routes without the booster on and as expected, calls dropped in areas where I knew the signal to be poor from prior experience.
The Drive 4G-M will not make something out of nothing. That’s something that no one on earth has the power to do. But as long as there is a signal, the weboost Drive 4G-M can amplify the weak signal and turn it into a much more stable and reliable signal. With a more reliable signal, your battery life on your devices will also last longer as they don’t have to turn up the gain to constantly search for service.
Summary
The weboost Drive 4G-M retails for $379.99 at wilsonamplifiers.com and Amazon.com. Considering how much we pay for cell service at today’s pricing, we should all expect stable cellular signals no matter where we go. However stable cell service simply does not exist for most of us.
If you’re someone who relies on a strong and reliable signal while in your car, the weboost Drive 4G-M can make a world of difference in boosting your signal strength with gains up to 50db or 32X what you’re currently getting. It’s a brand that first responders trust, and is now a brand that goes with me wherever I go to provide solid and reliable service.
