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BlitzWolf Quick Charge 2.0 and 3.0 chargers review

Josh Noriega
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1

I don’t know about you, but sometimes it seems like I can’t have too many chargers. When that low battery notification hits, I just want one to be readily nearby. It’s also nice to have options when you travel.

Thankfully, there are a variety of third-party choices these days, even for Qualcomm’s latest standards. Many folks don’t want to buy an additional fast charger from the phone OEM, because they typically charge an arm and a leg. So with that, let me introduce two excellent chargers from Blitzwolf.

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One of them is capable of the Quick Charge (QC) 2.0 speed and the other future proofs you for the next wave – QC 3.0. Let’s check them out.

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Design

These two chargers are the same but different. They both have a cube design, but the finishes on the plastic are different. The QC 2.0 model is glossy all around while the QC 3.0 model is matte. I would say that the latter feels less cheap, and it doesn’t leave fingerprints.

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The QC 2.0 unit is thicker and wider, but that’s because of the extra features. There’s an extra USB outlet and the prongs can fold (a nice feature for traveling). The functionality of the QC 3.0 model is more direct – just one charging port and rigid prongs.

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Despite the different in-hand feel, they’re both constructed solidly and give no indication that they won’t hold up.

Functionality

I briefly touched on the difference in functionality between the two. The QC 2.0 model has an extra charging port, but sadly, only one of them charges at the QC 2.0 speed. The other port has a 2.4A output, which is at least faster than what the pre-QC 2.0 days were.

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When you plug in the QC 2.0 charger, you see a blue hue emit from the charging ports. While it’s cool, I wonder if the light would bug anyone while they’re trying to sleep. You don’t see anything flashy on the QC 3.0 of the sorts.

As expected, the chargers work as advertised. I get the “fast charging” indication and speed on my phone. But note that I could not test the QC 3.0 speed, because there aren’t any phones out yet that utilize it (not even the newly launched Galaxy S7). Fortunately, it’s backwards compatible with QC 2.0, so you would buy it at this point to be future-proof.

Both units also have overcharging and overloading protection for your devices. Dubbed Power3S, the charger is said to intelligently detect the connected device and deliver the appropriate power.

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Final Thoughts

You can’t really go wrong with BlitzWolf’s charger offerings. They’re solidly build and function as they should. The prices are also decent. You can pick up the QC 2.0 and QC 3.0 models for the same $11.50 price (and free shipping) from Banggood.com.

In my experience with them, I really don’t see any reason for someone to pay 3x more for an OEM charger. The functionality is the same.

Special thanks to Banggood.com for supplying the review units!

Day One Apps: The first apps we install on every new Android (Volume 6)

Donovan Jeska
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6
Continue

U.S. Cellular is offering $300 for switchers

Andrew Orr
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0

Looking to switch carriers? U.S. Cellular has begun offering $300 in credit to customers who port their number and trade-in their phone – even if the phone has a cracked screen. In addition, U.S. Cellular is offering its home solution products for one penny, along with the first two months of service FREE, which includes Home Phone, Router + Home Phone, Hot Spot and Modem devices that normally run $20-$30 per month each. If a current customer refers a friend and the friend activates a phone on a Shared Connect plan, both parties will get $50.

US Cellular coverage map

This is a great deal for customers who are either looking for a new carrier, or those without phone insurance and wanting to upgrade a cracked device. U.S. Cellular is even offering an unlimited buy-out of customer’s contracts after they submit their final bill from their carrier. Joe Settimi, vice president of marketing for U.S. Cellular, says:

“We know that there are people who are looking to change wireless carriers, but they have broken screens that have no trade-in value, and therefore can’t afford to make the switch. We wanted to remove that barrier for people and give them an easy way to upgrade…”

I know what you’re thinking: since U.S. Cellular is a prepaid carrier, they probably have crappy phones right? WRONG! Customers can buy premium devices, including the iPhone 6s/6s Plus, Samsung’s Galaxy S7/S7 Edge. They also have tablets like the iPad Pro, iPad Mini 4, Galaxy Tab E, and more. Although “prepaid” carrier isn’t technically correct, as U.S. Cellular has regular Individual Line plans, as well as Shared Data plans and the prepaid options.

Source: U.S. Cellular

 

 

LG G5 and Friends are going on sale in April

Andrew Orr
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0

After winning the “Best New Smartphone” award (and 33 other awards) at Mobile World Congress 2016, LG is not standing still. Today they announced that the LG G5, as well as the collection of companion modules called “LG Friends” are coming to the US market in early April. The devices will be sold on all of the major carriers and retailers, which include AT&T, Best Buy, Best Buy Mobile Stores, B&H, Sprint, T-Mobile, U.S. Cellular and Verizon.

Quick Spec Rundown

[graphiq id=”i3EkYvCMwM5″ title=”LG G5″ width=”600″ height=”473″ url=”https://w.graphiq.com/w/i3EkYvCMwM5″ link=”http://smartphones.specout.com/l/5086/LG-G5″ link_text=”LG G5 | SpecOut”]

LG Friends

  • LG VR Headset
  • 360 Cam
  • Rolling Bot

They’re called “friends” because they’re meant as extensions of the G5 while being easy to set up and connect. The VR headset is a stereoscopic piece light enough to wear comfortably. It connects to the G5 via USB-C cable and has a 1.88-inch IPS screen with a 639ppi pixel density. Most standard VR apps and games, such as those available for Google Cardboard, will work with LG’s headset, including the photos from the 360 Cam.

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If you’ve ever wanted a robot pet, LG’s Rolling Bot is a good contender. Called a “drunken, headless BB-8“, it’s roughly the size of a bowling ball. The Bot can take 8 MP photos and videos of its own, which can function as a home security cam or by checking on your pets, as the Bot can stream the video via Wi-Fi straight to your G5.

The 360 Cam has two 13MP cameras and 4GB of local storage (with microSD support). The Cam also has three microphones to enable 5.1 surround sound to pair with the videos you take. LG makes it easy to upload your videos to YouTube 360 and Google Street View.

The main premise of the G5 is the modular design. LG hopes to entice customers by letting them swap the battery on the fly, adding a high-fidelity speaker, and attaching a camera grip. It’s up to customers to decide whether these modules are a gimmick, or if they truly add extra functionality to the phone.

For a limited time, LG is offering early adopters that buy the G5 a free extra battery and battery-charging cradle.

Note: The article was updated to provide more detail on the LG Friend devices.

Source: PRNewswire | Engadget

Backspin is a great media player for your Android [Review]

AndroidGuys
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0

BS5 Overview

While a lot of current music listening options nowadays revolve around streaming your content from a certain provider, free or otherwise (Google Play Music, Amazon Music, Spotify, etc.), many of us still have a lot of purchased music sitting in multiple places. This media is in the form of .mp3 files.

Remember those? The dozens, if not hundreds, of music files you paid for over the years? These can be and are easily forgotten about, when it isn’t all available to play through a easy-to-use and good-looking interface.

Enter Backspin, a new and very good music player for Android.  Developed by Logan Shaw, this app is meant to be a complete replacement music player for whatever stock player(s) that came with your device.  You can read more info on the app at its website, www.backspin.me.

 BS3Setup

You download the app from the Play Store. From there, you can and probably will go down a couple of different roads to get your music on the app. The first is pretty easy, as, upon startup, the Backspin app will automatically scan your device for and upload the .mp3 files you already have on your device (onboard and SD-card memory).

This, at least in my experience, is a crucial point: if you’ve purchased music from an online source but not yet downloaded to your device (like moi), then there is some manual labor involved to complete setup.

  1. You must first download the music service’s downloader software (Google Music Manager or Amazon Music for Mac or Windows.
  2. Then manually move the software onto your computer.
  3. From there you plug in your device (where it should be automatically discovered as an external drive), and drag-and-drop or copy-and-paste your files from the manager’s folder into the device folder of your choice.
  4. Then you open Backspin, go to the settings  window, and choose “Rescan”, where the app will discover your newly downloaded files and place them in its system. As you add music to your device, the app will also periodically discover these new files on its own, too.

This isn’t a ding on the app itself, but an unwritten commentary on the state of the current digital media market, and the overriding role that digital rights management (DRM) has on our lives as consumers. It’s a shame the content providers don’t make it easier for us to enjoy the media we purchase and “own”. OK, rant over.

App Interface/Usage

Listening and managing music in the app is very easy and pleasurable.  A couple of great features is the ease in which to make new or manage existing playlists, and its “Smart Shuffle”. To add or remove songs is as easy as tapping the ‘+’ or ‘x’ icons, respectively. Moving songs within a playlist is a drag-and-drop affair. “Smart Shuffle” makes sure every song in a playlist is played during ‘shuffle’ mode before repeating.  That way if you want to jump directly to a specific song in the the playlist, the shuffle won’t re-start and begin repeating again….pretty smart.

Yet another nice idea is the ease to move playlists between devices. You can use the traditional method of uploading & downloading via a PC/Mac with USB tether. But you can also email yourself playlists (sent as .xspf files), and then import directly into your device with the email attachment….again, pretty slick.

Visual quality is a definite highlight, as I honestly prefer the color, font, and layout scheme to all other streaming services. It’s really that good; I was struck immediately by how your eye can flow right to what your looking for, without distraction. Menus and contextual actions are intuitive and fluid. The app also looks as good (if not better) on tablets as on phones; the extra real estate is not wasted, with more information and visuals, without cluttering the scene. I’m interested to see if or what Logan brings next to the market; he certainly seems to have an eye for design.

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Sound quality and customization is also here, with a full-boat equalizer ready to tweak your tunes. Equalizer settings can also be saved and/or loaded as presets on-command.

Summary

Overall I was very impressed with Backspin, and highly recommend it as your new Android music player. From control and management of your content, to the outstanding visuals and clever features, this app certainly gives new life to your collection of purchased .mp3 files. Seriously, give it a try!

Android Beta makes it much easier to install Android N

AndroidGuys
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0

We were all minding our own business having a slow news day yesterday when all of the sudden Google decided to make the Android N preview available to developers across the world. As a team, “we” decided that I would be the guinea pig that would install the new OS on my precious Nexus 6P so I went about figuring out what I needed to do. What’s really cool about the Android Preview this year is that Google is making it a lot easier for people to access the newest nameless tasty treat.

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Android Beta Program

Traditionally you have had to download a tar file with the system files and flash them all over fastboot. That’s not all that daunting for the seasoned flasher, but to an Android newbie, it might look like an unscalable mountain.

The Android Beta program is something that Google is trialing this year to make it much easier for developers to get Android N onto their smartphones. More than likely, developers don’t really need a tool that makes things easier, but things that make life easier are always welcome.

Standard Disclaimer Straight From Google:

The Android Beta Program gives developers an opportunity to try out pre-release versions of Android. The program is currently targeted towards developers and is not suitable for use on your primary device…You may opt-out of the program at any time to return to the stable, public version of Android. Note: If you opt-out when your device is running a beta version of Android, all user data on the device will be wiped.

Now that we have gotten all of the boring legalese out of the way, it’s actually super easy to enroll (or opt-out) of the Android Beta Program. Once you have mustered the courage, go to https://g.co/androidbeta and see if you have any eligible devices. If you do, you can enroll in the program. After I signed my life away, the notification that I had an update popped up on my phone almost instantly and I began downloading the update. It’s also worth noting that the update is about 1.1 GB, so I wouldn’t recommend doing it until you are somewhere with a sturdy WiFi connection.

After that, it’s just like installing any system update that you will have had on a monthly basis since Marshmallow was released. I’m still taking some time to take a look around this freshly baked confectionery, but upon first glance it has a lot of visual changes. Most notably is the new setup for quick settings being relocated to where Samsung first started putting them back in the Gingerbread days and (finally) multi-window support. Below are some screenshots that I have taken while I’ve been playing with the new OS:

For more details on what’s to be found in Android N, check out our post from earlier today or feel free to comb through the official documentation from Google to find out what’s in store!

How to access stock Android’s hidden UI settings [and Android N updates]

Josh Noriega
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2

All Android enthusiasts love stock Android. There’s just something really special about the real Android experience. That said, it isn’t perfect. There are some functionalities that should be there that aren’t. For instance, look at the additions coming to Android N.

There are, however, a couple UI controls already there that you may not know (introduced in Android Marshmallow). That’s because they’re in a hidden Settings menu. I’m not sure why Google did this. I mean, it’s nothing mind-blowing, but they are nice-to-haves.

The hidden menu is called “System UI Tuner”. To get there, pull down the notification shade and hold down on that little Settings cog on the top-right corner for a few seconds. When you let go, you’ll see a message that says “Congrats! System UI Tuner has been added to Settings”. You’ll see the activated menu appear at the bottom of the Settings (under “About phone”).

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Before we walk through what’s in there, I want to point out that the Settings cog icon in the notification shade changes. It gets a subtle image of a wrench next to it.

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First launching the System UI Tuner pops up a dialog box with some insight.

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There are currently four options in there (but subject to change in the future):

  • Quick Settings – Customize the functions that display in the Quick Settings (on the notification shade). You can rearrange or remove functions. If you muck it up, there is a reset button in the top-right menu.

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  • Status bar – Choose what icons can show up on the Android status bar or not.

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  • Show embedded battery percentage – Puts a numerical battery percentage in the status bar battery icon.

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  • Demo mode – When activated, sets the status bar in “Demo” mode, reducing the shown icons down to only the radios, battery, and clock.

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Android N updates to System UI Tuner

We found out about Android N today, and turns out, there’s updates to the System UI Tuner coming with it. We took screenshots from the developer preview and here’s what we noticed:

Color and appearance menu:

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  • Night mode – Switches areas in OS that show a “light” theme (white color – such as in the Settings) with a dark gray color. It’s called “Night mode” because it’ll be easier on the eyes when using your phone in a dark place. There’s an automatic option too, that changes the setting based on the time of day.

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  • Calibrate display – Allows you to change the display’s levels of RGB colors.

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Do not disturb menu:

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  • Show with volume controls – Places toggle in volume slider to open/close Android’s do not disturb options.
  • Volume buttons shortcut – Enables/disables shortcut to do not disturb options when you slide the volume all the way down (enabled by default in Android).

Other menu:

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  • Disable fast toggle – In Android N’s Recent Apps switcher, you can quickly cycle through the app list by double-tapping the Recent Apps button. However, the system has a short timer that will open the app you stop on. This toggle will disable that countdown when “paging” through apps.
  • Enable split-screen swipe-up gesture – A different way to access Android’s upcoming multi-screen feature, by swiping up from the bottom rather than the default long-press on the Recent Apps button.
  • Show full importance settings – We’re not yet sure about this one.

Extra status bar icon customization:

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So what do you think? Are these features that you think you would use, or do you not care? Are you looking forward to the updates in Android N?

Bellroy Elements Phone Pocket Plus wallet brings luxury to the outdoors

Derrick Miyao
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2

Let me just start by stating that I am a combination of a Chemist, and obviously a tech enthusiast as I write for AndroidGuys. I don’t find shows like The Big Bang Theory funny. I don’t need to watch shows about myself. My specialty at work is automation and robotics of Medicinal Chemistry. I am the definition of a Nerd. Luckily that is a good thing in today’s time, because I can be nerdy and cool at the same time.

Many of us tech enthusiasts put function over design when it comes to our gadgets. But there are people who demand both function and form when it comes to all of their products. There’s nothing wrong with that. I happen to be one of those people.

Apple comes to mind when I think of a company who makes refined products, and only sells the cream of the crop accessories for its devices. I know I am an AndroidGuy, but that doesn’t mean I can’t see what is going on outside of my world. And in fact I do like nice things. And it doesn’t matter if I like Android or iOS when it comes to phone protection or protecting my valuables. I just want the best and I want it to look good too.

That’s where Bellroy comes in.

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Bellroy got its start in 2010 by finding a way to solve the problem of giant overstuffed wallets. The designers had the vision to reengineer the basic wallet to match the times.

Wallets that are designed to hold things like our smartphones, sim cards, credit cards, and sim ejectors don’t have to look “techie”. Bellroy created a line of wallets designed to protect our essentials against the elements, hold our tiny sim cards, coins, cash, keys, credit cards, and most importantly, our smartphones. I have been using one of its wallets for the last six weeks and am in love with it. Let me tell you more.

Bellroy Elements Phone Pocket Plus Design

Bellroy makes the leather focus and foundation of its products. There are very different qualities of leather, and when a product is backed and sold by the retail store Nordstrom, you know its quality has been vetted by more than just Bellroy.

The wallet I was using before the Bellroy was purchased from Nordstrom, which has lasted me over 10 years and aged beautifully. Bellroy’s leather and stitching is no different and is definitely top quality. The smell its leather wreaks of high quality.

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“Leather’s unique properties make it the material foundation of every Bellroy product. To ensure our leathers are slim, strong, and a delight to use, we run a magnifying glass over the tiniest of design details. We only use vegetable-tanned leathers from LWG gold-rated tanneries. This ensures they are toxin free and crafted to world-class environmental standards. We then finish our leathers in one of three ways.”

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The Bellroy Elements Phone Pocket Plus wallet is made from the all-weather leather and is definitely waterproof. It’s also extremely durable and withstands my active weekends at the beach or on the local hiking trails. In order to keep what’s inside safe, the makers at Bellroy installed a zipper that is completely rubberized to keep out moisture and dirt.

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Inside of the wallet is a variety of perfectly designed pockets – there is a slot for a key, SIM card, SIM ejector, cash money, credit cards, and a smartphone for phones with displays up to 6″. It easily fits the iPhone 6S Plus, LG V10, Samsung Galaxy S7 edge, and Nexus 6P.

It measures roughly 7 x 4 inches and is very lightweight. There is heavy duty stitching around the wallet that gives me confidence this wallet can last a long time. Bellroy stands behind its products with a full three year warranty.

Usage

In the last six weeks I have been to Boston, Reno, and Los Angeles for work trips. That’s where I put the Bellroy Elements wallet to the test. When I fly I am always worried about losing the little things I carry in my pockets mainly because of TSA airport security.

The process of going through security screening is stressful. You have to take off your shoes, pull out your laptop, throw away liquids, and then put your most valuable items in a fully open container to be scanned by someone who takes their sweet time. All while you’re being patted down or scanned in a giant irradiation chamber in a long line of people.

The Bellroy wallet saved me every single time I had to go through security. With my most valuable items in my wallet, even my wrist watch, I dropped it in the bin with my shoes. It was so much easier to stay organized with this wallet. And it also kept my phone protected from banging around in the bin. The wallet from Bellroy is the perfect travel companion as it reduces so much of my anxiety when I go through the security lines.

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If you live in other parts of the country, you would know San Diego really doesn’t experience winter. I can get outside almost every single weekend of the year. The average high for San Diego for the month of February was 65 degrees. On the weekends I was in town, I took my dog to the beach and my Bellroy wallet came along and protected my valuables from the elements. Sand, water, and dust didn’t stand a chance of getting into my Bellroy. The same went for the hikes we went on around the county. The Bellroy Elements Phone Pocket Plus wallet withstood the life of a traveller and outdoor enthusiasts lifestyle with ease.

And when I took it out with me when I went out around town, it fit in just perfectly with its luxurious design. I couldn’t be happier with the wallet.

What I liked:
  • All-in-one solution
  • Gorgeous high quality leather
  • Water and dust resistance
  • Pocket for SIM card and ejector (perfect for a blogger)
  • Perfect for traveling
  • Three year warranty  
What I didn’t like
  • Tad bulky

This is the perfect wallet for staying organized for travelers and outdoor types

At $119.95 some might balk at the price. But considering that it is a phone case and wallet made from high quality leather, I would argue that the price might be on the low side. I have purchased wallets three times its price, and those just held my money and credit cards.

With attention to every single detail, the Bellroy Elements Phone Pocket Plus is perfect for those who care about form and function. Tech is cool these days and the accessories need to match. This wallet does just that and is perfect for those who spend time outside of the home for work or for the love of being outdoors. I’ll be getting a few more of these to give as gifts to my father, brother and a few close friends. You cannot go wrong with a wallet from Bellroy.

To learn more about Bellroy’s entire product line visit them at bellroy.com. If you want to purchase the Bellroy Phone Pocket Plus head on over to Amazon.com where you can get it in a range of colors for $119.95 with free Prime shipping.

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Behmor Connected 8 Cup Coffee Maker review

Scott Webster
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0

[df-subtitle]Brew a pot of coffee via your smartphone[/df-subtitle]

Coffee and smartphones. Two my favorite things. What happens when you get to combine the two?

As somebody who regularly consumes coffee as part of his daily routine, you can often find me with at least one or two cups throughout the morning. Sometimes I need the caffeine jolt to get me going, other times I just like the taste and the familiarity. Either way, it has become a staple in my life.

Over the last decade our house has gone through a couple of different brands and models as we look to find the ideal coffee maker for our needs. Does it have a self-timer? Can you brew a full pot within a matter of minutes? Can you pause the brewing to pour yourself a quick cup? Indeed, there are many questions that come up and designing the best coffee maker.

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When I learned that Behmor had introduced a “connected” coffee maker, I jumped at the chance to review one. I’ve known about its existence since last summer but haven’t been able to give it a go. Why? No Android app. Sadly, it was a tough few months waiting for that thing to show up in the Google Play Store.

I’ve spent the last two weeks with the Behmor Connected 8 Cup Coffee Brewer. In short, this unit is a no-frills, no clutter device that connect to your house via Wi-Fi. Once set up, you can instruct your coffee maker to brew a pot directly from your phone. What a time to be alive. What follows is my impressions of the coffee maker and a few take away points.

Setup

The first thing you notice about this coffee maker is that it does not have a digital readout nor are there any of the traditional buttons to mess with. Really, there are only two buttons on this device: the brew and the DADO connection button.

Upon taking it out and plugging it in, you will need to first connect your coffee maker to your Wi-Fi network. If you have ever set up a Wink Hub, DADO-connected product,  or any similar smart home equipment, then you understand how you might go about doing this. In short, you create a direct connection from the coffee maker to your phone and tell the coffee maker your Wi-Fi details. After that, you will find that your coffee maker switches over and connects to your Wi-Fi at home or in the office.

behmor_front_top

I ran into a little bit of trouble connecting this to my network, but it was actually the fault of my router. I recently switched to a different router with my AT&T U-verse internet setup, and it has proven to be a real pain in the butt with stuff like this. Whereas I used to connect a Wink Hub to my router and control my front door’s deadbolt via smartphone, I can no longer do that.

Getting the coffee maker to talk to my generic router was troublesome. But, having an extra one in the house, I connected it to my network and then was able to connect the coffee maker to the second router. It sounds a little trickier than it actually is; most new or brand name routers should not prove to be a problem.

Once connected you will then calibrate the coffee maker based off of your elevation settings. Indeed, this thing can learn what temperatures and settings it needs to brew at to create the ideal cup. Calibration just takes a few minutes and essentially results in running the water through a single pass.

Mobile App

The mobile app is nice and rather straightforward in that you can set various options. Do you want to pre-soak your coffee grounds to release extra flavor? If so, how long would you like that? What temperature do you want to brew at? These are questions that I previously did not have to worry about with more traditional coffee makers. Not that I am complaining, mind you, this is actually somewhat eye-opening. I’ve since learned that different coffees brew and taste better at different temperatures and different types of beans work better if they are pre-soaked for, say, 45 seconds.

The app is a clean and intuitive experience that doesn’t overwhelm the user with too many options. How many cups do you want to brew? What temp? Wanna pre-soak? If you find yourself going with the same type of coffee every day, you can set up a profile that features your preferred default settings.

UPDATE MAY 25

The Behmor app has been given a punch-up in the 1.2 release and has learned a few tricks. Features now include an ETA on brew time and/or cleaning, a 24-hour look at the upcoming brew, and quick start confirmation.

Convenience

I have really come to enjoy the fact that I can wake up and press a button on my phone to brew coffee. Now, before I am even out of my bed, I am brewing a pot of coffee. The best part? It doesn’t matter when I wake up.

behmor_portraitSure, you can set a standard coffee maker to brew everyday at 7 a.m. or whenever you want. But, what happens if you sleep in and your coffee has been sitting there for an hour or two? I like the concept of being able to start the coffee when I want, regardless of what time I woke up.

I was impressed with the general speed at which the coffee maker works. I found that 8 cups would brew in a matter of 5-7 minutes. It’s worth noting that your phone will notify you once your brew is set and coffee is ready to pour. This notification comes via a double buzz and audible alert.

Getting your coffee maker ready for brew is as you would expect. You pour the water into the top reservoir, put your coffee grounds in the filter, and place the canister below. After that you are good to go.

Should you want to bypass the app or just go with the traditional way of growing a pot, simply walk up and press the big circular button in the center on the coffee maker.  The button has a color halo which will switch from a glowing green to different colors based off of what activity is happening at the time. If you are following along on the mobile app, you can see that it is pre-soaking, brewing, or that it is ready to drink.

You don’t have need to use the phone to start a brew. Using the default settings you’ve programmed in your phone, the simple press of the button gets things going.

Room for improvement

As for some of the things that I was not completely enamored with, there are but a couple. For starters, this is an 8-cup unit. In my house, we have grown accustomed to having a ten or twelve cup unit in the kitchen. It might sound trivial, but that extra couple of cups is noticeable on mornings when my wife and I need that extra jolt.

There are basically two settings for how much coffee do you want to brew with the Behmor Connected. You can choose from six or eight 5-ounce cups.  In a related note, there is a handy reference guide that comes with the coffee maker. I found it useful to help understand how much coffee to put in the filter based off of  flavor needs and roast.

I really enjoy the idea of being able to adjust the temperature of my water. My wife prefers a piping hot cup of coffee whereas I tend to like it when it has cooled a few minutes in the cup. The Behmor Connected coffee maker lets you brew at temperatures up to 210 degrees with a one-degree precision. At the max level this may be very hot and jarring to some.  On the lower end, it may come across almost lukewarm to other. The issue that my wife and I ran into time and again was that no, matter what temp we selected, the canister did not keep the coffee all that hot for very long.

Really, this was our biggest complaint with the device. I don’t know if it is the lining of the carafe or in the way it is vented to pour, but it does seem to lose its heat someone quickly. There is no burner at the bottom to keep things warm; we appreciate having this in more traditional coffee makers.

While I admire the simplicity of the design and appreciate the effort to keep things straight forward, I did occasionally miss having a digital readout. I would like to be able to glance at my coffee maker to see the time, or to set a timer for the next Brew. This is not a deal-breaker, really, but it is just a touch that I have come to miss period.

Price & Availability

When it comes to pricing, the Behmor Connected carries a $299 retail price with availability at Crate & Barrel, Amazon, and other outlets. I find this to be a little too high for my liking, but in checking around other reviews, it seems to be acceptable. To me, it might be closer to a $229-$249 coffee maker. The Behmor Brazen Plus, at $199, has many of the same features (digital readout, timer) plus some of those I wanted here.

Google announced the Android N Developer Preview- here’s what’s changing

Matt Adams
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Today Google is letting us in on the next big release of the world’s most popular mobile operating system, Android. The new version of Android is still being developed, but Google is releasing it to developers in hopes that they can get plenty of feedback on the new version of the OS. The more time they have to incorporate that feedback into the next release of Android, the better.

Here are a few of the more high profile changes.

Multi-Window

Multiwindow_N6P_N9

For years now we’ve seen that having multiple windows open on the same screen is possible in Android. Samsung heavily promotes the fact that their phones support it, and manufacturers like LG and Sony also incorporate the ability for apps to float on top of each other. Now we’ll be seeing native support for this feature in Android.

This is big because developers will now be able to code in support for this feature. We will see more apps with the ability to pop out and continue to function while you complete other tasks. I have a Nexus 6P, which has a 5.7″ screen. My screen has more than enough real estate to let me watch a video from YouTube or Netflix in a pop out window while still looking at Reddit or Google Plus. Now that feature will hopefully come on every phone with Android N.

 Direct reply notifications

Google will now be incorporating the ability to reply to messages from the notification shade. We have seen third party apps, and even Google’s own Hangouts app incorporate quick reply, and now it will be available in stock Android.

When a message comes in, a notification will appear at the top of the screen  and give you the option to reply directly to the message. To my eye, this appears to be pretty similar to how iOS allows users to reply to text messages at the top of the screen.

Interestingly enough, we’re also seeing the power toggles in the screenshot for Quick Reply. We’ll have to see if they show up when you pull down the shade, or if it will still require an extra swipe.

Project Svelte

Project Svelte is Android’s answer to keeping system requirements manageable. Phones are only getting more powerful, but Android has to play nice with a many different manufactures and many different specifications. Keeping the minimum system requirements reasonable will open doors for cheaper, better phones.

Doze

Doze currently works to increase your battery life when your screen is off and the phone is lying still. In Android N, Doze will now kick in when your screen goes off. Applications that have high priority notifications will still be able to wake your phone.

Grouped Notificationsbundles_2x

If you frequently get multiple notifications from one app, this feature may interest you. Developers will now be able to group multiple notifications together to save space in your notification area. A simple tap of the group and they will expand to reveal more details.

We expect to see more details emerge in the run up to Google I/O in May. The release today is intended for developers only, but a more friendly beta release will go out to the public around Google I/O. Builds of Android N will then be handed off to manufacturers in the summer.

If you want to check out the Android N Developer Beta, head over to Google’s new Android N Developer Preview page. You can also keep your eyes peeled to the Android Preview page for more stable builds when they become available.

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