When new devices are released, we are always clamoring to get our hands on them. However, some of us aren’t as fortunate as others, and can’t afford to jump on the pre-order bandwagon. So for those who can’t get their hands on the device, we need to get our fix of the latest devices. When there aren’t new icons or anything of that sort, we resort to the official wallpapers.
What made the Huawei Nexus 6P and LG Nexus 5X so “fun” was that when Google announced Marshmallow, there were certain wallpapers, but when the new devices were released, they featured wallpapers that couldn’t be found. You could go through Google’s Earth View and try and find them, but it’ll take you hours and hours, and you’ll probably still come up empty. (I tried this route, and only found the Nexus 5X wallpaper with the Nexus 6P wallpaper nowhere to be found. Thanks to two users on Reddit, leshpack and ZeGuitarist, they were kind enough to extract the official wallpapers, and share them with the world.
So scroll down a bit more and download your wallpaper of choice, and let us know what you think about Google’s two latest devices. Have you been able to pick either of these up yet? What are your impressions of the Nexus 6P and Nexus 5X. Drop us a line in the comment below and let us know.
Qi wireless charging is one of the newest and most convenient technologies for charging your phone. Along with Quick Charging, Qi charging is changing the charging game. Flagship phones like the Samsung Galaxy Note 5 and Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+ come standard with this feature and the market for third party antennas to enable wireless charging is booming.
Today we’re going to take a look at the QiStone+, the universal wireless charger from Fonesalesman. What does a universal wireless charger mean? Well, this little device can not only charge your phone via Qi wireless charging, but you can also recharge the QiStone+ with another Qi wireless charger. Pretty cool, right?
One of the first things you might notice about the QiStone+ is how much the “stone” part of its name really describes it. This thing wouldn’t stick out in your garden amongst the other stones. It’s gray and smooth and only about 4 inches long, almost 3 inches wide, and half an inch thick.
The outside of the device looks like the Sandstone backing of the OnePlus One, but it’s much smoother. If you have a phone with a slippery back, like the Note 5, it won’t fall off this charger without a push, but there’s definitely not a bunch of grip here. It can be good not to have that kind of friction because you don’t want to damage the surface of your phone.
QiStone+ vs. Samsung Galaxy Note 5
The charging surface is pretty big top to bottom, but where you may run into trouble is left to right. The charging radius doesn’t extend very wide. Luckily, it isn’t that hard to find the sweet spot on this charger. You shouldn’t have to search around for it like on other chargers. When you do find the charging sweet spot, you’ll hear a beep. It’s a loud beep. It’s an annoying beep. And there’s no way to turn it off. If I have one gripe with the QiStone+, it’s that beep.
The bottom of the device has some grippy feet and is printed with the regulatory information, along with a QiStone+ logo. Moving your way to the side of the device, you’ll find a blue LED the lets you know your phone is charging if that loud beep isn’t enough. There is a capacitive area on the bottom right corner of the device that, when you press, lights up the four green LEDs. These LEDs are the battery indicators and give you an easy way to identify how much battery you have left to use.
The battery inside is 4000mAh, which is big enough to charge almost all of today’s flagship phones from dead to full. One thing you do need to keep in mind with wireless chargers is that there is some power loss in transfer. The QiStone+ has a charging efficiency of 74.6%, so in real world situations you’re going to get about 3000mAh out of the battery, enough to charge up a Note 5 or Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+.
In addition to being able to charge your phone wirelessly, there is an additional USB port where you can plug in a cable to charge a second device. Fonesalesman also indicates that using this port, the device can act as a data passthrough device as well. The device does sound hollow when knocking on it, which leaves me wondering if there was more room for a bigger battery. With battery banks routinely reaching over 10,000mAh for much cheaper than the QiStone+, a bigger battery would make this an instant buy for me.
I tested the QiStone+ with 5 cases. I was able to charge my Note 5 with the Spigen Neo Hybrid, Incipio DualPro, Urban Armour Gear, and Ringke Slim Case. I had less than stellar results with the Boxwave Dual+Max Holster Case. I don’t have any more cases that approach how thick the Dual+ Max Holster Case is, but if you have a case like an OtterBox you may have issues wirelessly charging.
I have very few gripes with the QiStone+. The beep is annoying, the USB port only charges at 1A, and it’s a bit on the pricey side. The fact that a $50 charger doesn’t come with a wall adapter is kind of inexcusable, but the positives massively outweigh the negatives.
This thing is so small you can easily slip it into your jeans pocket or a bag when you leave the house. It’s stylish enough not to look too geeky and you can charge a few devices at the same time with it. If you’re one who keeps these in a bag for long periods of time, don’t worry about scratching this thing. I tried my best to get it to scratch in real world situations with no luck.
All in all, I would say I recommend the QiStone+. You can pick it up on FoneSalesmans’s website here or on Amazon here. Unfortunately, there are no in-store options.
I recently got the opportunity to review AudioFly’s complete performance in-ear headphone collection. There are four headphones in this collection that each fit into a consumer’s budget. There is the under $50 pair, the under $75 pair, the around $100 pair, and the around $200 pair. I recently reviewed the AF33 earphones that were the most budget conscious. Today, I’m taking a look at the AF45 earphones that that up the quality and the price.[spacer color=”264C84″ icon=”fa-android”]
Unboxing and Accessories
The package these headphones come in is actually pretty cool. Inside the plastic cover will all of the pictures and information about the AF45’s, there is a simple cardboard box with the AudioFly logo printed on it.
Opening it from the front, all the sides fold down and you are presented with the headphones all all their accessories neatly packaged in a foam insert. This nice display makes everything appear premium when first opening the box. Included in the package are the AF45 earphones, a selection of different sized ear tips, a nice vinyl carrying pouch, and some info about warranties and instructions.
The carrying pouch is pretty nice, although it is a tad small. You will be wrapping your earphones pretty tightly to get them crammed in there, and good luck carrying the extra ear tips in the pouch as well. The AudioFly name is embossed on one side with the website and phrase “Designed in Australia” printed on the other.
Design and Build Quality
I have found that the build quality is the biggest improvement with these over the AF33’s. Instead of the plastic cable on the less expensive model, the AF45’s have a braided cable that feels much more premium. AudioFly calls this their “Audiofelx” cable and says it is made for outstanding durability. I have not been able to test these headphone’s durability for a long period of time so I cannot attest to any durability claims.
What I can tell you is that this cable feels extremely premium, and I have noticed no frays or tears in the time I have spent using it. I would definitely bet on this cable outlasting the plastic on on the AF33. One problem with this cable is that you will notice it causes quite a bit of noise. It is not the quietest cable out there, and if you are walking around wearing these earphones, you will definitely notice some cable noise.
The other parts of the earphones are mostly the same. Most of the earphones are made of plastic, but that keeps them light and comfortable to wear in your ear. There are actually aluminium caps at the ends of the shells that give them a nice, quality look. The design of the earphones makes them extremely comfortable to wear for long periods of time, and I believe these are neck-and-neck with the AF33’s for second best comfort in AudioFly’s performance earphone collection.
Sound Quality
AudioFly touts that the AF45 has a custom voiced 11mm dynamic driver that “yeilds beautifully balanced bass, round mids, and a crisp high end for incredible definition,” but do they live up to that claim?
For the most part, it is a resounding yes. There is a wonderful balance to the sound, and listening to music is a delight. The low end was smooth and just punchy enough for my linking, but I am not one to like extremely punchy bass. This is matched with equally powerful mids and highs that both sound amazing.
When listening to music, separation is pretty impressive with individual voices and instruments being easily pinpointed. I noticed that detail was the main thing lacking, especially in the high end. Sometimes, sounds seemed to meld together in the highs. That being said, the AF45’s performed quite well over all.
The AudioFly AF45’s are fantastic for listening to music, and I imagine most people will not notice or care about the somewhat lack of detail in the highs. There is also an in-line mic on these earphones, and call quality sounds great on both ends. These earphones provide a great listening experience for their $70 price point.[spacer color=”264C84″ icon=”fa-android”]
If you are looking for a nice sounding pair of budget earphones, the AudioFly AF45 do a fantastic job compared to other earphones in this price range. The design is appealing, and the cable feels durable even if it is somewhat noisy. You can go and grab the AF45 straight from AudioFly’s website or you can get them from Amazon (which is running a great deal right now!)
Image manipulation on Android is nothing new. It’s been around since the early days of Google Play, then known as Android Market. Sketch Master is another one of those apps pining for that valuable space on your phone.
Sketch Master overview
Sketch Master is an app that allows you to manipulate an image through a series of filters, stickers, frames, and many other tools created for image manipulation. You can choose from one of your images already on you phone or you can use your camera and start from scratch. Many of the filters, stickers, and frames are free, but there are a few that require an in app purchase of $1.49 each.
The app is ad supported, but an ad-free version of the app can be found on google play for $1.49 as well.
Sketch Master setup
The setup is pretty easy. Aside from downloading the app from Google Play, you’ll need to create an an Adobe account, or if you currently have an Adobe ID, you can just log in using your existing credentials. In doing so, you’ll unlock various filters and overlays.
Sketch Master usage
The app is dead simple and very intuitive to use. You start off with a set of predefined filters designed around making the image look like it was sketched or painted. You’re not required to select any of the filters. If you want, you can select the original image as your base before proceeding to the next round of edits.
Once you move into the 2nd round of image edits, you’ll find the overlays and additional filters. In order to fully master and acquaint yourself with all the different options, you’ll need to click on the all of the various filters to see what you think.
This is where I found the app to be very enjoyable. I thought it was rather fun exploring the different filters and playing around with the stickers. There is even a meme generator that makes meme creation fairly easy.
The app’s UI, loosely follows Google’s Material design. It’s not bad, but I prefer the standard Material Design to this slight re-imagining.
The ads, for the most part, were fairly unobtrusive. There are a few full page ads that you can easily close, but for $1.49 you can get rid of them all, which, if you like the app, will be a small sacrifice.
One thing that I would like to see is a tighter integration with Adobe. It would be pretty cool if your images would sync with Adobe’s Creative Cloud. I mean, the developer already requires the Adobe ID to unlock certain effects, so it shouldn’t be to much more of a stretch to be able to sync your images with your creative cloud work space.
What we liked
Easy to use
Fun filters and stickers
Lots of effects, filters, and stickers to choose from
What could be better
Better integration with Adobe Creative Cloud
The UI could follow Google’s material design a little closer
4.13 out of 5 stars
Overall this is a fun app to use, especially if you enjoy fine tuning your images. This, of course, goes far beyond the sepia tones of the early Instagram days and makes playing around with your images fun.
Samsung completely revamped its entire Galaxy smartphone line this year, focusing on premium build materials. Its sales numbers have been dropping off in the recent past with the Galaxy line, especially in countries like China where Apple and Huawei are seeing tremendous growth. Overall Samsung still sells more smartphones than any other manufacturer by a wide margin. The days of Samsung dominating the smartphone market appear to be in threat as others steal market share.
To slow the declining sales numbers, Samsung shook up management in hopes that changes would start from the top and work its way down. The new management team had a clear vision of what it wanted: it took the utilitarian, do everything devices, and turned them into a superficial devices that looked great for the masses while eliminating features it deemed useless like the removable battery and microSd card slot. Ironically it still kept features most of us find useless like duplicate apps which I will delve into in the software section.
The Samsung Galaxy Note line has been my favorite over the past few years and by no small margin. The Note line typically offers the best specs and hardware of any calendar year and can handle all tasks I throw its way.
When I was given the opportunity to review the Samsung Galaxy Note 5, I was more than happy to do it. Samsung is hoping a new design and construction of one of its best selling smartphones will help turn the sales tide back in their direction. Lets check it out.
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Overall Design
Without question, the new Galaxy Note 5 put aesthetics ahead of all other features. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as it really is one of the best looking phones of 2015, if not the best. Off the top of my head, I cannot think of one other device that looks as good as the Note 5. The device is framed in metal and is covered with Gorilla Glass 4 on the front and back, giving it a super clean look. The Note 5 I have comes in a deep midnight blue, which Samsung calls Black Sapphire, and is absolutely stunning. It’s a nice change from simple black or silver that we have been seeing since the arrival of smartphones.
Being glass on both sides makes the Note 5 feel incredibly fragile. Almost all of us have seen the consequence of drops as a shattered screen, either through our own devices or someone we know. I’m not someone who really likes to use cases as I feel it: 1. ruins the look of the phone 2. adds unnecessary bulk 3. adds more cost. I don’t see a point in buying a phone for its looks only to cover it up later. With that being said, I am playing Russian Roulette by not using a case on the Note 5, and because of that I am always holding it a little tighter than previous phones. Having a shattered screen AND a shattered back panel would end the desire for a great looking phone rather quickly.
Another downside to having a glass back panel, is the Note 5 is a fingerprint magnet. It looks greasy immediately and every time I would show the phone off to someone, I would have to wipe it down first so it didn’t look so dirty. This was an annoying side effect from having glossy plastic phones, but having glass just brings that problem back again.
Another sacrifice, at the expense of design, is the lack of a microSD card slot. Samsung, once a pioneer in keeping expandable memory alive, is now forsaking it for aesthetics. Like the Apple iPhone, memory upgrades come in $100 increments, but at least the Note 5 comes in a base 32GB model in the US. This is a deal breaker for some, and I don’t understand why Samsung did away with it other than to assume it was to drive up revenue through memory upgrades. There are other metal phones like the HTC One M9 that provide memory card slots.
Overall, you can’t argue the Note 5 looks incredible. But there’s a cost to looking so good in that it attracts fingerprints and now runs the risk of having a shattered screen as well as back cover.
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Processor – Exynos 7420
Samsung decided to forego Qualcomm this year and thankfully so. Qualcomm, for the first time in years, ran into overheating and throttling issues with the Snapdragon 810 which would have held the Note 5 back from performing its best. Instead, it utilized Samsung’s own octa-core Exynos 7420. This chipset was used in the Galaxy S line and proved to be ultra speedy. Now it comes with an extra gig of RAM, for 4GB total.
Almost everything performed quickly with the occasional hiccup which could be attributed to software. Overall this is one area the Note 5 shines in and the internal hardware should perform for years to come.
No other phone matches the hardware performance of the Note 5 in benchmark tests.
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Display
The Note 5 comes with a nearly identical 2k, 5.7″ Super AMOLED display found on the Note 4 and it is simply the best display you can get your hands on today. According to some expert reviewers, the colors aren’t perfect but I think they look stunning. The contrast ratio is unmatched by LED displays, and in full sunlight you can still read the Note 5’s display, even with sunglasses on.
The area where I enjoy the screen the most is when I review the photos. The level of detail and color is unmatched by any other phone and makes looking at photos a fun experience.
Text and movies are equally stunning on this 5.7″ inch display and since the Note 3, I really have given up on tablets as a source for media consumption as the screen size is perfect for me. I tried using the Nexus 6 this year, and had fears the larger screen would make it hard to go back to a smaller screen. Instead I found that the 6″ inch display was just a little too big for me to handle and verified my love of the 5.7″ display size.
The S-Pen, also known as a stylus, is the most distinctive feature about the Samsung Galaxy Note 5. It is where the Note derived its name, for it is a tool designed for taking notes. No other device does the stylus as good as the Note, and Apple saw the success of the stylus and came out with its own “Pencil”. A new design feature in the Note 5 is a spring loaded stylus which pops out at the push of a button. This does help contribute to a much cleaner look, but one big issue is if you put the stylus in upside down it will break off inside of the device causing a set of issues. So don’t put it in upside down.
The S-Pen is perfect for jotting down notes, phone numbers, drawing, or even navigating the display as it is pin-point accurate. It isn’t a feature everyone uses on a regular basis, but for those of us who do, like me, we absolutely love it. As a medicinal chemist, there aren’t many tools outside of paper notebooks that are easy to draw chemical structures in, but this note-taking method handles my needs perfectly. I can jot down chemical structures and keep them all stored on my phone without having to go through old notebooks. I love it, but for many it might not be useful as typing on a keyboard is quicker than pulling out the stylus.
An added feature to this year’s Note is the ability to takes notes on the screen when the phone is off. Yeah, that’s right when you pull the stylus out of the phone, you can write on the unlit display in white lettering and it will auto-save to your device when you hit the power button. This makes for super quick note taking and is a very advanced feature no other phone has.
Whether you love doodling, taking notes, editing pictures or using the stylus as a navigation tool, the S-Pen is unique and sets the Note line apart from all other phones.
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Battery Life
The Galaxy Note 5 comes with a 3000mAh battery, which is smaller than last year’s Note 4, but it also comes with Qualcomm’s Quick Charge 2.0 and built-in wireless charging. The trade-off was the removable battery, which every other Note had. For some users that is a deal breaker. I would dare to guess that most people never need to change their batteries for an instant refill, but for many Note enthusiasts this is something that broke our hearts.
The Note is designed to be a powerhouse, not just a typical texting and web browsing machine. Note users adore the line because of the versatility it offers and probably use their phones more than the average user. This means they need a versatile and long-lasting battery, as the last thing they need is to be sitting next to a wall waiting for their phones to be charged. Nothing beats swapping in a fresh battery to bring the charge up to 100% within one minute. Not even Quick Charge 2.0 can beat that.
With that being said, the Note 5 does have excellent battery life and I found myself being able to make it through a full day with moderate to heavy usage. With over two solid months with the Note 5 as my daily driver, I did not see a decline in the quality of the internal battery, but there were many days while traveling when I had to pull out an external battery to keep my phone charged. Again, this feature isn’t necessary for everyone, but for me it was a heart breaker knowing I once had a feature that could get me to 100% power in one minute.
The addition of wireless charging was something I actually came to enjoy. Not having to plug in my phone when I went to sleep, or sat at my lab bench was really nice. Wireless chargers these days are really efficient and the Note 5 even charges faster than the last generation wireless chargers with a compatible device.
Having fast wireless charging and Quick Charge 2.0 are two features most people will love. I love them too, but I just wish Samsung kept the removable battery option, which will be a deal breaker for some die-hard enthusiasts.
Camera
The camera in the Note 5 is really one of the best cameras you can get in a smartphone. Samsung knows everyone is taking more and more pictures documenting our food, pets, children, sunsets and everything else you can think of. The camera on the Note 5 really shines and is not only fast, but it is super clear and performs well on every level. It does well with action shots, still shots, close-ups, selfies, panoramic scenes, and night shots.
The specs of the camera are nothing short of impressive: 16MP, optical image stabilization, LED flash, 1/2.6′ sensor, HDR, with a 5MP wide front shooter. Check out some of my samples below to gauge for yourself. You will be hard pressed to find a better camera than what comes with the Note 5.
I have the AT&T model of the Note 5 which runs Android Lollipop 5.1.1. This is a very stable version of Android which is skinned with Samsung’s own Touchwiz. Touchwiz brings a lot of useful features like Multi-Window or S-Pen, but it also brings a ton of useless features. Installed on the Note 5 are duplicate apps of what Android already provides. Samsung forces duplicate apps onto its devices like Samsung Pay(Android Pay), S-Voice(Ok Google), Gallery(Google Photos), Galaxy App Store(Google Play Store), email, phone dialer and texting. This can be confusing for some and I have yet to find someone who actually prefers the duplicate Samsung apps over Google’s apps.
In addition to duplicate apps, Samsung also lets AT&T provide a whole host of its own apps which can only be deactivated wasting more than 1GB of precious memory. As a consumer, I don’t think it is right that we pay for an expected amount of advertised memory(32GB), only to have it wasted with apps we do not want and cannot delete. It’s this behavior from Samsung that is really causing the downfall of sales as customers don’t want to be confused with duplicate apps or apps they don’t want. If Samsung really wants to take a lesson, they need to take a hard look at iOS and see how they limit bloat on its devices.
I’ve used stock Android on the Nexus 6 and it is normally very fast. With Samsung’s Touchwiz over-layed onto Android, I’ve seen more hiccups than I would like with a processor that beats all others in benchmark tests. The software itself is still fast by any measure, but there are times when apps lag and close on their own which I attribute to Touchwiz.
The other thing to be aware of, with Samsung, is terrible timing with updates. Other manufacturers have committed to updating their phones to the latest Android version within reasonable amounts of time, but Samsung works on its own schedule and should be a major concern to anyone who uses their phones more than six months.
Many reviewers like myself use phones for maybe three months until they get a new one. Reviews on software will usually be positive as the device they are reviewing usually comes with the software that is most up-to date. I decided to not upgrade my Samsung Galaxy Note Edge for one year, to really try to understand why so many users complain about slow updates, and boy oh boy, did I feel their pain. My Note Edge ran for six months on the buggy Android 5.0 and I could barely make it to 5pm on a single charge. My phone constantly lagged due to memory leaks and overheated on a regular basis. When I asked AT&T and Samsung when I would get an update to fix these bugs, the answer was indefinite. Samsung has yet to commit to Android 6.0 on my Note Edge which is just one year old and still costs $950 new.
So if you’re a typical user, be aware that Samsung may or may not update your version of Android and that will leave you stuck with security vulnerabilities and bugs that are addressed in the latest updates.
With that said, the Note 5 software is quick and does have nice features like themes and Multi-Window which is something yet to be found on stock Android devices. I still would prefer much less bloat and a simpler user experience.
Summary
I really think highly of the Samsung Galaxy Note 5 in more areas than not. I admire its beauty and think it has incredible hardware specs that set the bar for other manufacturers. Its camera, S-Pen and display are second to none. But Touchwiz and Samsung’s poor record of updating software make me hesitate in recommending this phone to the average consumer. Yet, most will probably prefer the new design over having a removable battery and expandable memory.
For die-hard Note fans, I can see most of them sticking with their Note 4 in hopes Samsung will get back to its utilitarian ways and put aesthetics second to function and software updates. I’ve seen more first-time users now though as they simply love the design of the Note 5 and that scares me. It might validate that Samsung was right with putting looks first and they may never get back to what made the original Note series great – complete versatility.
Regardless, if you understand the risks in software updates, and do not care about expandable memory or a replaceable battery the Samsung Galaxy Note 5 is a worthy option.
I recently had the opportunity to review another Bluetooth speaker by Inateck called the MercuryBox. Both the MarsBox and the MercuryBox could not be any more different from each other. They are both designed with a different purpose in mind.
MarsBox overview
The MarsBox is designed to be more than a speaker. It’s meant to be a conversation piece as well. It has a unique, modern design and while I love the look of the speaker, I would love to see some other color choices other than red. It’s not that I mind the red, I just think that they are limiting the audience by limiting the speaker to one color.
While the MarsBox is technically portable, it is much larger than the MercuryBox. Â It comes in at a litter over 7″ long, 2.5″ thick, and 3″ tall. Not gargantuan by any means, but after using the MercuryBox, it feels like a beast in your hands.
The entire surface is covered with a soft-touch material that gives is a great feel when handling the speaker. Unfortunately, this also makes the speaker a fingerprint magnet.
The speaker has 4 buttons on top. One for answering calls / switching to the FM radio. Another for changing the volume levels / changing tracks / seeking between FM channels. And finally there is a play / pause button. On the back is the power button.
Now you may have noticed that I just mentioned an FM radio. That was not a type-o. There is an actual FM radio built into the speaker. All you need to do is press the call answer button and the speaker will switch to FM mode. Unfortunately, this will also disconnect your Bluetooth connection. So you can only use it for one purpose at a time. While it doesn’t need to be plugged in for the speaker to work, the power cable is designed to act as antennae, so you may need to plug it in while using the FM radio in order to receive your favorite station.
Other features of the MarsBox include:
Dual 5-watt driversÂ
Bluetooth 4.0 (fully backward compatible) with a range of up to 33ft/ 10m
Alternative 3.5mm audio jack for non-Bluetooth devices
Built-in 2200mAh rechargeable Lithium Ion battery offers 10-15 hours of play time
Built-in high sensitivity Microphone, hands-free telephone calls
Easy pairing and connection to Bluetooth devices without code/PIN
MarsBox setup
This speaker is super simple to setup. First charge the speaker. Once you turn the speaker on, it will automatically be put into discoverable mode. All you need to do is search for devices from your phone and select MarsBox from the list of available devices. Now you’re done. All you need to do is enjoy your music.
MarsBox usage
The sound quality of the  MarsBox is pretty good, but it definitely performs best with the lower to mid range sounds at higher volumes. The higher sounds end up sounding just a little muffled. It’s not really very noticeable except that I was listening to it after the MercuryBox, which performs best at the higher range of the sound spectrum and at lower to mid volume levels. Neither were bad, they both have their own strengths.
The FM radio works pretty well, but I found that it had trouble picking up the weaker radio stations. The ones that did come through sounded great. I found that plugging in the included USB cable only produced marginally better reception, not enough to make a station listenable if it’s not already.
One thing that I really liked was the little pads on the bottom of the speaker. It made the speaker stay in place even on uneven surfaces.
Another nice touch is the color-matched USB and auxiliary cables. They compliment the look of the speaker and they give it higher end look. Like the MercuryBox, the cables are made with a braided nylon and they feel great.
Material that wouldn’t attract as many fingerprints
Better sound on the higher end of the sound spectrum
3.9 out of 5 stars
Overall this is a great speaker. It’ll look good in your office or on a bookshelf at home and more importantly, it’ll sound good too. The speaker normally sells for $129, but for a limited time you can pick one up on Amazon for the very affordable price of $49.99. So what are you waiting for? Get yours before it the price goes back up.
Yesterday was the first time Finnish developer Supercell hosted “ClashCon”, a gathering hosted in Helsinki based on all things “Clash of Clans”. Beginning at lunchtime, the event lasted until 21:00 GMT+3 and saw several clans face off in a war tournament, with “GLORY CHINA 1” taking first place.
Ilkka Paananen, CEO of Supercell, took to the stage before all the events began and gave a short speech before inviting Jonas Collaros, co-founder of the game, up. Jonas had a nice surprise up his sleeve as he connected his developer iPad to the big screen, followed by shouts of joy as Town Hall 11 appeared (or shouts of terror at how ugly it was). A demonstration of the new “Falcon”  defense followed, before telling the crowd that this was just a small part of the incoming update.
Typically, big updates are released once per year and we are yet to witness that. A Halloween update was released on Thursday which brought the usual small changes, mostly graphics changes to incorporate the Halloween essence. It is rumored that this update will bring new buildings, new troops and several new features.
We are yet to find out when the new content will be pushed. Supercell did, however, hint that more sneak peeks will be released in the weeks following up to the update, so we can assume it will land between Halloween and Christmas (which also brings a theme update).
I live in sunny San Diego, CA. which is perfect for the CHOETECH 19W solar charger as sun is something we get year around. It was 83 degrees, with full sunlight today and it is not too far off from what winter will bring too. Why not use the sun to power up my devices if it is providing the energy for free?
Design
The beauty of the CHOETECH 19W solar charger is in the simplicity and durable folding design. It comes with a pouch on the back for keeping your devices out of direct sunlight. It is super light-weight and folds up to a very manageable size, making this charger perfect for throwing into a backpack or automobile glove box as a backup plan.
The solar panels themselves are made from a polymer that is much lighter than a typical silicone panel, and is sewn into canvas material for extra durability. In reality, it looks like a few sheets of thin sized dark plastic on the backside of black canvas and could pass for a folding binder. On the last panel there are magnets which keep the folding panels from opening on their own.
On the backside there is a mesh bag sewn into the panel which is there to hold USB cables and the devices you are charging. The energy converter is also on the backside as CHOETECH knows that mobile devices are not designed to be left in direct sunlight.
Overall the design is fantastic and will be a perfect source of energy for when I go on camping trips or when I am out at the beach all day with my pup who can’t get enough of the water.
Usage
The CHOETECH 19W solar charger really is one of the easiest accessories you will ever use. You plug your USB cable into the power converter, which you can plug up to two devices simultaneously, and you zip up the devices in the mesh back to keep them secure. Then open the panels and put in direct sunlight and your devices will start charging immediately.
In sunny San Diego sun, my devices were charging at 2.4 amps which isn’t quite the power needed to drive Qualcomm’s Quick Charge 2.0. But it was enough to charge my phones quicker than standard chargers we were used to from devices from just a year ago. Once I let my phones charge for free using the sun, I simply pulled my phones out, which were slightly warmed from the sun but not at all hot, and folded up the charger and was on my way.
On other days when I experimented with the charger in cloudy conditions, the charger could not draw enough energy from the sun which made it ineffective. So be aware, this charger will need full sunlight to operate properly.
The CHOETECH 19W solar charger is a must have accessory for the outdoor types and who get a lot of sunlight.
Specs
Solar Power: 19W solar panel
Transformation efficiency: 22%-25%
Output 1: 5V2.4A(Max)
Output: 2: 5V2.4A(Max)
Compact Size: 10.2×6.3×0.7inch
Opened Size: 20.9×10.2inch
Weight: 0.48kg/16.9oz
Summary
I know not everyone is fortunate to have sunlight year around like we do in San Diego. But the CHOETECH 19W solar charger is definitly a great accessory for the summer months if you’re an outdoors type of person. It is super lightweight and can recharge your devices countless times for years to come. While I’m not on backpacking or camping trips, the CHOETECH 19W solar charger is going to live in my truck’s glove box as you never know what can happen.
If you would like to purchase the CHOETECH 19W solar charger, head on over to Amazon.com. It has 92 customer ratings with an average 4.5 stars out of 5. CHOETECH is a brand you can trust and they back up their solar charger with an 18-month warranty.
I love music, but I’m an audiophile with wine tastes on a beer budget. I’m always on the look out for audio equipment that provides a good value. When I ordered the Inateck MercuryBox I had high hopes. Read on to see how it stacks up.
Inateck MercuryBox overview
The first thing that I noticed about this speaker was the quality of the packaging. I felt that it was something that I would expect to see from a much more expensive speaker. Inside the box was a case, a lanyard and a USB cable and a 3.5mm auxiliary cable.
The speaker itself is fairly compact and portable. It’s about 6 inches long, 1 inch thick, and two inches tall. It’s encased in metal with five lighted and rubber covered buttons on top. You can find a lanyard on one end and your charging and auxiliary ports on the other.
Specs
Bluetooth 4.0 Speaker (fully backward compatible) with up to 33ft/ 10m Bluetooth signal
Dual 5-watt precision-tuned drivers
IPX5 water resistant speaker
Built-in 1800mAh rechargeable Lithium-Ion battery offers up to 15 hours of play time.
Built-in high sensitivity Microphone, hands-free telephone calls.
3.5mm audio port
Inateck MercuryBox setup
The speaker is easy to setup. First, make sure to fully charge the speaker. Then place the speaker in pairing mode by pressing the Bluetooth button for a few seconds. Finally, search for the speaker from your device and viola, the speaker is ready to go.
Inateck MercuryBox usage
Of course, the first that that I did after pairing my phone was to crank it up. It was here that I found a fairly major problem. When playing audio at the highest volume, certain tones would make the metal casing vibrate. Piano music, in particular, seemed to have this effect. By applying pressure to the metal case, I was able to stop the case from vibrating. I guess it could have been a defect unique to my speaker, but the buyer should at least be aware.
The tiny vibration noise was nonexistent at lower and mid volume levels. The actual sound quality at these levels was actually pretty good. The mid to high range sounds is really where the speaker excels.
One of my favorite features is that it is IPX5 water resistant. That means splash proof, not dunk proof. This makes it ideal for listening to music in the shower. I personally love to listen to podcasts in the morning while I shower and I found that it works great for that.
Another great feature is just how portable the speaker is. Because of its diminutive size, it will fit just about anywhere. A purse, murse, satchel, backpack, or even non-skinny jeans pockets should have more than enough room to store the Inateck MercuryBox.
One thing that I was impressed by was the fit and finish of the speaker. Not only are the materials high quality, but they all come together with a high-end feel. Even the USB and auxiliary and 3.5mm audio cable have a higher end feel to them. They come encased in a gray braided material, which has a much better feel than the more traditional rubber encased cables.
This really turned out to be a great little speaker. The only knock that I can give it is that certain tones resonate with the metal case at louder sound levels. I found that it sits perfectly and handsomely on my desk at work. If you’re looking for a Bluetooth speaker that will look and sound good, but you don’t need to crank it up to the maximum volume levels, then I recommend that you consider this speaker. It normally runs $99.99, but you can pick it up for $45.99 on Amazon with free shipping for Amazon Prime members.
Managing contacts on your phone can be a nightmare, especially when switching to another phone. The disastrous process of importing contacts from one phone to another can be easily avoided if your contacts are backed up to your Google account. This way, as soon as you sign in to your Google account on your Android phone, contacts will be synced by default and you’ll be good to go. This approach to managing contacts is much easier than backing contacts up to your SIM card and having your carrier manually import contacts to your new phone. Here’s how you back up contacts to Google:
[spacer color=”264C84″ icon=”fa-android”]
    1. Go into your Contacts app
Although there are many different Android phones, all of them will have a “contacts” or “people” app to view your entire address book. This is my Contacts app, and I’m going to tap the three-dotted action menu button to view options. Your menu button may be in a different location depending on your phone.
    2. Go into the ‘Accounts’ section
Tapping the three-dotted menu button gives you the option of going to your Accounts section, where you’ll be shown all the accounts you have logged in to your phone (Google, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.) and this is where you want to go to your Google account.
You may have multiple Google accounts on one phone, but choose the one you’d like to backup contacts to.
This will take you to the Sync page within your Google account that shows everything that’s synced up with your Google account. One of these is contacts, where you can activate and Google will sync all of your current contacts with your Google account. After several seconds later, your contacts will be backed up.
Backing up contacts to Google is an easy way of knowing your contacts will be ready for you on your next Android phone once you sign into Google on that one. Similar to backing up photos and music to the cloud, keeping your contacts synced with Google is becoming the best way of managing your address book.
