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Govee Flow Plus Light Bars review

Jason England
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Not too long ago, I reviewed the Govee Flow Pro lights and fell in love with them. Now, Govee has a new, more affordable set of light bars called the Flow Plus. Keep reading to find out how they compare to the Flow Pro light bars.

Key specs:

  • Create lighting effects using up to 16 million colors
  • Flexible mounting with two different stand options available
  • Reacts to music
  • Intuitive and feature-packed app
  • Compatible with Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant

Design

Inside the box, the Govee Flow Plus consists of two light bars connected by a Y-cable that plugs into the controller box. There is also a separate power cable that goes from the box to the wall outlet.

When it comes to mounting, Govee includes two different styles of stands. One set is for standing the light bars upright, this is perfect for using them with a computer or placing on your TV stand. While the other set is meant to allow you to attach the light bars to the back of your TV with 3M adhesive.

Both sets of stands work great and setting up the Flow Plus Light Bars is a breeze.

User experience

The Flow Plus Light Bars lose one of my favorite features of the Flow Pro Bars, and that’s the camera used to make the lights match the colors on your TV. However, if you’re afraid the changing colors might be too distracting, then the Flow Plus Light Bars will allow you to set the color manually and allow you to save some money.

Beyond using them for bias lighting with your TV, the Flow Plus Light Bars can also be used for mood lighting bouncing off of your wall and they also react to music.

In my experience, the music function is a bit hit or miss. I tried out all the different modes and the lights don’t always seem to react reliably to the music being played. Regardless, the light show it puts on still looks fantastic, even if it’s not entirely accurate.

App

One of the best parts of the Govee lights is the app. The Govee Home app is one of the most professional and well-laid out smart home apps I’ve ever used. It gives you extensive control over the lights and all without being overly complicated to use.

Without the camera included with the Flow Pro Light Bars, you’ll probably use the app quite a bit. That’s because you’ll either be changing the colors manually, setting one of the scenes, or even creating your own scenes to get the most out of the Flow Plus Light Bars.

Additionally, the app allows you to power the lights on or off, set sleep timers, or use the lights to gradually wake you up in the morning. Speaking of powering the lights on or off, the Flow Plus Light Bars also integrate with Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant. That makes it quite convenient to control the lights, and you can even change the color using voice commands.

Final thoughts

Essentially, the Govee Flow Plus Light Bars are the same as the previous Flow Pro, only without the camera, and with a lower price of $65 or more with the $15 off coupon available right now. That makes them perfect for using as a static bias lighting system for your TV or placing them with your computer.

For my money, I’d rather pay extra and purchase the Flow Pro Light Bars if you want a backlight for your TV. Having the lights react to what’s on the screen with the camera makes a world of difference.

However, if you’re only wanting to light up the wall behind your computer or you’re concerned the changing colors would be too distracting, the Govee Flow Plus Light Bars will be perfect for you.

Buy from Amazon Buy from Govee

Grab a Boost Mobile Samsung Galaxy A32 5G and one month of service for $100

AG Deals Team
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Are you in the market for a new smartphone? What are your primary concerns? Looking for a large screen, great battery, and 5G connectivity? Search no further than the deal we have for you today.

Swing by the AG Deals Store and you’ll find we have the Samsung Galaxy A32 5G handset with one month of service from Boost Mobile, all for just just $99.99. That’s right, the phone and your first month of service is included in the low price.

As an Android 11-powered handset, the Galaxy A32 5G offers up a 6.52-inch HD screen with a generous 5,000mAh battery. And thanks to its quad-core MediaTek processor and 4GB memory, it’s plenty of performance for most users.

The phone also comes with a four-camera array on the rear with a 13-megpixel shooter on the front. Toss in NFC, fast charging, and support for up to 1TB external media, and you’ve got a solid mid-range experience.

This offer is not just about the phone as it also comes with one month of service through Boost Mobile, too. Indeed, you’ll get unlimited talk and text with 5GB of 4G/5G data.

Order Yours!

  • Buy the smartphone + plan bundle from the AG Deals Store for just $99.99 today!
  • Wait for your Samsung Galaxy A32 to arrive via FedEx
  • Boost Mobile will email you a $25 ePIN (Re-Boost Card) to activate 1 month of service of the 5GB plan
  • Activate online at activate.boostmobile.com or by phone (866) 402-7366

AnkerWork PowerConf S500 review

Andrew Allen
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Working remotely from your own home is now a reality for more and more people post COVID-19. Many of us have enjoyed this shift but the longer it goes the more we realize expanding our office gadgets may be needed as well. Anker’s new Work lineup is starting to fill some of those voids and the PowerConf S500 speaker is a must-have for those taking calls at home.

Design

The PowerConf S500 is a sleek and solid piece of hardware. This conference device is well put together. Around the top, you have the speaker and mic arrays. These include four microphones with 32KHz of sampling rate to make sure voices never see a drop. You will also find the 1.55-inch speaker flanking the lid.

Just below the Anker logo is an LED-lit capacitive panel for your basic controls of audio levels and mic. There is a metal rim around the entire casing with another set of tactile buttons.

Calls and controls

Let’s dive further into the calling using the AnkerWork PowerConf S500. All calls that I’ve taken with the speaker have been without issues. All three methods of connection have worked great. That’s right, you can use USB-C and Bluetooth wireless options to utilize the PowerConf S500.

The third option is also Bluetooth, but it’s if your other devices don’t have it built into the included hardware. Underneath the PowerConf S500 is a Bluetooth adapter that came in handy for my work desktop which doesn’t have an internal wireless module.

The controls of calls and audio are just as thoughtfully laid out. As mentioned earlier the top houses capacitive buttons to get things done. You can raise or lower the volume, mute the mic, or take an incoming call straight from this panel.

All of these worked just as described in practice. I was able to control all the label features in Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Google Meet. The same was also true on standard phone calls when wirelessly paired to my Pixel.

It uses adaptive VoiceRadar to determine the current speaker and hone in on that person. This focuses on noise-canceling to drown out the environment while amplifying the speaker’s voice to add clarity on the other end.

So what about the hardware buttons on the front? Three are pretty self-explanatory. You have power on and off, play/pause, and the Bluetooth pairing button. Long presses of the power button turn the speaker on and off. A single press of the play button starts or stops, playback. Finally, pressing the Bluetooth button sets the PowerConf S500 to pairing mode.

The second button from the right is a link mode switch. This allows two or more PowerConf S500 speakers to be linked together for larger audiences. Anker suggests that each speaker can properly handle chatter for around 10 people in most environments. So, if you know you’ll consistently be supporting calls with 15-20 folks in the room, another PowerConf might be worth it.

Battery

Anker rates the AnkerWork PowerConf S500 at 15 total hours of playback or calls. I’ve found that to be deadly accurate. I consistently get similar results with mixed use. This includes calls, video chats, and music playback.

Charging happens over a USB-C connection to the speaker. This doubles as the connection port if you want the lowest latency possible and keep it wired to your PC. A full charge took around four hours depending on the power source. It was slightly less when using a wall outlet adapter.

Conclusion

I genuinely like this market for Anker. Is it niche? Yeah, but it’s becoming the norm every day for people in the workforce. Anker has leveraged its history of making great consumer products into polished work devices like the PowerConf S500.

This conference speaking will surprisingly round out your home office or travel bag. But good things don’t come cheap. Full retail pricing is $220 on both AnkerWork’s website and Amazon. While it’s slightly past impulse purchase price tags, for the enterprise market this is more than competitive.

Yeedi launches 3-in-1 vac station

Andrew Allen
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Our homes continue to get smarter and smarter every day. Connected devices make our lives easier and one of the oldest in this category is robot vacuums. Yeedi has recently released its latest iteration and takes the evolution one step further with a self-dumping dust bin.

Basics included

As we said, robot vacuums are nothing new; the yeedi vacuum does the normal things you’d expect in this segment. You get 3000Pa force vacuuming to make sure every last crumb is taken care of. The vacuum is also capable on both hard surfaces and carpets.

Mopping is relative of any vacuum and yeedi has that covered in this new cleaning station as well. The included water tank and washable mop pads make shining up your new floors just as easy as vacuuming. Even better, the vac station can do both at the same time.

You can’t have a robot vacuum without the robot and yeedi’s vac station has all the major bullet points. Smart mapping of the home layout is onboard to make sure your little vacuum buddy knows where he’s been and not been. The vac also has smart floor identification to help determine the cleaning settings based on the materials.

Extra storage is always a plus

So what’s the ground-breaking new feature in this announcement? Well, it’s the station part of the moniker. The yeedi vac station has a charging base like most other robot vacuums, but the base also includes a silo to empty the dust bin.

This should extend the times you can use the yeedi vac with minimal maintenance between uses. No more need to remember to dump the vac dust bin every time you use the thing. yeedi claims that you can get up to 30 days of dust in the included dust bags before the vac station has to be emptied.

Available now

The yeedi vac station is available now on the company’s website. For $499 you can upgrade your automated cleaning habits in your home. If you already have the yeedi max vacuum, you can also add the new self-cleaning station for $199.

Xiaomi promises four years of security updates for upcoming 11T series

Scott Webster
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Xiaomi on Thursday announced that its forthcoming 11T and 11T Pro smartphones will receive three generations of Android updates. Moreover, the line will also be supported with four years of security updates, too.

This isn’t the first phone maker to make such promises for its devices; Samsung already offers this for many of its current-gen models. Nokia (XR20) and OnePlus have also committed to long-term support for some of their respective handsets as well.

As to whether Xiaomi will offer the same software and security support for existing devices, it remains to be seen. According to its Head of Product & Technology, Xiaomi appears up to the task of at least trying.

It is not a simple task for Xiaomi and its team to provide system updates and security patches to all of its previous smartphone models. However, the prospect of this challenge and meeting the desires of our customers is exciting.

If we were to hazard a guess, the newer the phones, the better the chance of it receiving an extended period of support and updates. Additionally, we suspect that Xiaomi may focus on flagship and higher-end models first. Budget devices and entry-level phones aren’t likely to see the same love.

The Xiaomi 11T and 11T Pro are expected to launch on September 15 and should feature some interesting hardware features. The flagship series are set to include noteworthy details such large 120Hz displays, 108-megapixel cameras, and support for incredibly fast charging. The 11T Pro, for its part, is expected to offer up to 120W charging.

Snag a refurbished Acer Chromebook for just $80

AG Deals Team
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With school season underway again things could be getting interesting around the house. Does your student need his/her own computer or Chromebook? Are you finding that multiple people are splitting time with the same device?

Stop worrying about lending your child that expensive laptop for homework and consider getting them one of their own. Right now you can find a refurbished Acer Chromebook in the AG Deals Store for just $80. That’s it – eighty bucks.

If your child is starting to find themselves having to log into a portal or submit homework online, the Chromebook is a perfect tool for such a thing. Moreover, it’s an inexpensive way of staying connected with social media, streaming services, and work email. And if you work from home, it’s a budget-friendly way of adding a backup computer to the home.

The Acer Chromebook starts in seconds, is powered by Intel Celeron Haswell micro-architecture processor, and has up to 8.5 hours of battery life. Run your favorite Google apps or access your photos, videos, music, and documents from anywhere there’s a Wi-Fi or Ethernet connection.

The Acer Chromebook automatically stays up-to-date (and virus-free) without interrupting you.

  • 11.6″ HD Display. Enjoy your favorite movies, videos & more on a wide high definition screen
  • Intel HD Graphics. Run some of your favorite games
  • 4GB RAM. Run multiple apps & browser tabs simultaneously
  • 16 GB SSD. Store photos, music, files & more
  • Bluetooth 4.0. Wirelessly transfer media between devices
  • WiFi + Ethernet. Go online via wireless network or Ethernet cable
  • 8.5-Hour Battery Life. Use your Chromebook for longer hours

Refurbished Rating

NOTE: This product is listed with a grade “B” rating which means it may have light scuffing on the bevel/case or light scratches/dents on the body.

Order Yours!

Pick up the Acer C720 Chromebook from the AG Deals Store for just $79.99 while supplies last. Once this one is out of stock, it’s gone for good.

How to hide people, pets, and dates from Google Photos Memories

Jason England
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Google Photos is one of the best ways to manage your images on a mobile device and it provides a multitude of useful features. One of these is Memories, a way for Google Photos to resurface old photos of people or places from your image collection.

To accomplish this, Google uses machine learning to cull through your photos and place these Memories at the top of the app when you open it. In a lot of ways, this is a fantastic feature that helps you look back through some of the best times in your life, all without requiring you to browse through hundreds or thousands of images to find them.

Unfortunately, as well-meaning as the Google Photos Memories feature is, it’s not always a good thing. Look, we’ve all been there, a messy break-up or a loss of a loved one. It’s not something we want to be reminded of until or unless we’ve had time to process it. In some cases that time may never come.

To help from dredging up those painful memories, Google Photos has a way to hide people and even pets from showing up in these auto-generated Memories. Follow the steps below to learn how.

How to hide people or pets in Google Photos

1. Open Google Photos
2. Tap on your user icon in the top right-hand corner
3. Select Photos settings
4. Locate Memories in the list
5. Choose Hide people & pets
6. Tap on the faces you’d like hidden.

In this case, we’ll use Scarlett Johansson as an example of an ex.

After completing these steps, Google Photos Memories will no longer show photos of the person or pet you’ve chosen. Additionally, you won’t be able to view them via the People menu any longer; searches for the person won’t return any photos of them.

For something a little broader, Google Photos also allows you to black out certain dates or a range of time from showing up in your auto-generated Memories. To do this, follow the steps below.

How to hide dates in Google Photos

1. Open Google Photos
2. Tap on your user icon in the top right-hand corner
3. Select Photos settings
4. Locate Memories in the list
5. Choose Hide dates
6. Using the calendar view, select the day or range of days you’d like to be hidden. This can include weeks, months, or even years.

There you have it — peace of mind!

360 Video Doorbell X3 review: This thing is pretty great

Luke Gaul
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Thanks to the advances in Wi-Fi capabilities and the increasing number of players in the connected home space, consumers have plenty to choose from when it comes to smart camera and security.

It’s easier than ever to keep an eye on our homes and offices while away, and apps with push notifications help provide peace of mind.

While a lot of people tend to think of security cameras as being these little orbs for the corner of our room or the back of a house, there’s another segment that’s getting more popular. We’re talking about the doorbell, of course.

In the first few years the video or smart doorbell seemed to be Ring’s space with other brands fighting for second place. But in 2021 things are much more competitive and customers get more bang for their buck. And they have to spend fewer bucks, too.

The 360 Video Doorbell X3, available for $200, is a great value proposition that offers up a full suite of specifications and features but with a price that doesn’t break the bank.

The 360 Video Doorbell X3 has a 5-megapixel camera which features facial recognition as well as the ability to detect packages.

Powered by a 5,000mAh battery, it can operate in both wired and wireless manners. The camera works well in both daylight as well as the middle of the night; the HDR and Night Vision ensure you see the best picture available.

Speaking of smarts, the camera can detect whether someone is wearing a mask, and can automatically sound an alarm. In the meanwhile, it’s also sending you a notification in your phone so you can see what’s happening.

Rounding things out, the 360 Video Doorbell X3 has an anti-theft alarm, a dual-band wireless hub, and the ability to store video locally or through the cloud via Amazon (AWS).

Features

  • Works in wireless and wired manner
  • IP66 weather resistant
  • Detect faces and packages
  • Store video locally or in the cloud
  • Anti-theft measures
  • Push notifications
  • Automatic siren

Impressions

When it comes to features and functions, we’re impressed with what the 360 Video Doorbell X3 puts forward. It works just as well in the daytime as it does night and we appreciate not getting a bunch of false positives. The doorbell is able to differentiate between a few leaves blowing by and a package being left on your porch.

Should you find yourself unable to come to the door, you can hop right in through the app and speak to the person leaving a message or use a few preset replies.

Digging deeper, it’s also possible to teach the camera who some of your family members are so that you can know as soon as your son or daughter comes home. Set an alert and you’ll know immediately when your child has arrived home safely from school or if your teen is sneaking back in a 3:00AM.

One of the pains of setting up new cameras is typically found when connecting to your Wi-Fi network. Does it work with 2.4GHz? 5GHz? That’s not an issue here because the dual-band support means the doorbell connects to either the higher-speed or longer-range bandwidths.

We like that we’re able to use the app to make settings on the fly, such as adjusting motion sensing ranges, length of recording, or the automatic siren. Similarly, it’s a semi-intuitive experience that allows for quick viewing of videos captured over the last few days and weeks. That is, of course, after you spend time getting understand where features are tucked away.

The doorbell is capable of storing up to 120 days worth of videos or snapshots as there is 8GB of space available inside. Once you hit that threshold you’ll simply start rewriting on top of the oldest footage first.

The 360 Video Doorbell X3 comes with a 5,000mAh rechargeable battery which is good for around six months of life on a single charge. There’s also an external 10,000mAh battery pack which extends its battery around 12 more months, giving you about six seasons worth of functionality.

Where to Buy

You can learn more about the 360 Video Doorbell X3 at the manufacturer’s website where it also offers a growing number of other smart home products. To purchase you’ll be directed to Amazon where it currently retails for about $200. A limited time coupon takes off $50, bringing it down to a very attractive $150.

From now until the end of September you can pick on up for even less! Use coupon code X3DoorBell at checkout and you’ll save another ten bucks. That puts it at $139.99 which is damn near impossible to pass up.

Code: X3DoorBell
Discount off: $60 off
Original price: $199.99
Deal price: $139.99 ($50 off coupon + $10 off code)
Start date: 2021-9-2 06:00 PDT
End date: 2021-09-30 23:59 PDT

UScellular Buyer’s Guide

Jason England
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When it comes to your mobile service, I’m sure you’ve heard all of the big names out there like AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon. However, those aren’t the only players in the U.S. when it comes to cell service.

For example, there is a smaller regional mobile network operator known as UScellular. Continue reading below to find out more about UScellular, its plans, and other services it provides.

About

UScellular was founded in 1983 in Chicago and now operates in 21 states with 5 million customers. Despite being a regional carrier UScellular provides nationwide coverage with a variety of postpaid and prepaid plans. Additionally, UScellular offers high-speed wireless internet utilizing its 4G LTE network.

Plans

UScellular offers prepaid plans that start as low as $30 per month and postpaid unlimited plans that begin at $50 a month for a single line. As with many other carriers, enrolling in autopay offers a discount for postpaid customers, and the more lines you add the more you save on each individual plan.

Prepaid plans

  • $30 – Unlimited talk and texting, data costs $0.03/MB
  • $40 – Unlimited talk and texting with 15GB of data
  • $55 – Unlimited talk, texting, and data
  • $65 – Unlimited talk, texting, and data with unlimited calls to Mexico and Canada, as well as 22GB of priority data

Postpaid plans

  • $50 – Unlimited minutes, texting, and 2GB of high-speed data that switches over to 2G speeds after you hit your limit
  • $60 – Unlimited minutes, texting, and data with speeds dropping to 3G once you reach 100GB
  • $70 – Unlimited minutes, texting, and data with 25GB of priority data and speeds drop to 3G once you hit 100GB. Also includes roaming in Mexico and Canada, HD video streaming, 15GB hotspot access, robocall blocking, and one free Redbox rental per month.
  • $75 – Unlimited minutes, texting, and data with 50GB of priority data and speeds drop to 3G once you hit 100GB. Also includes roaming in Mexico and Canada, HD video streaming, 30GB hotspot access, robocall blocking, and two free Redbox rentals per month.

Can you bring your own device?

UScellular is BYOD friendly allowing you to bring your own device if it is compatible with its network. You can check if your device is eligible for UScellular’s network by entering your IMEI on this page.

If your device is not compatible, then you can purchase a phone through UScellular’s shop, as well as trade-in your old phone to save some money.

Where to learn more

More information can be found on UScellular’s website or on the company’s FAQ page.

Page Plus Buyer’s Guide

Jason England
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When it comes to mobile service, we’ve all heard of the big names in AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon. However, we’ve also noticed the premium prices each one of these mobile providers charges for their rate plans. Cell service through one of these carriers can often run you upwards of $60 or more a month for a single line.

What if I told you there was a cheaper way to get service using the same towers the mobile giants use? Welcome to the world of Mobile Virtual Network Operators, companies that lease the same towers as the big boys but charge a fraction of the cost.

One of those companies happens to be Page Plus.  Keep reading to find out more about this MVNO and the plans it offers.
About

Page Plus is a prepaid contract-free MVNO established in 1993 and headquartered in Ohio. It runs on the Verizon network and is a subsidiary of Tracfone, a telecommunications company that owns several MVNO operators.

Plans

Page Plus offers 3G and 4G Pay-as-you-go plans that start at as little as $10 and unlimited no-contract plans starting at $12 a month.

3G pay-as-you-go plans

  • $10 – 100 minutes for 120 days
  • $25 – 416 minutes for 120 days
  • $50 – 1000 minutes for 120 days
  • $80 – 2000 minutes for 365 days

4G Pay-as-you-go plans

  • $10 – 166 minutes for 120 days
  • $25 – 416 minutes for 120 days
  • $50 – 833 minutes for 120 days
  • $80 – 1333 minutes for 365 days

1GB of data can be added for $5 or 2GB for $10 along with international calling for $9 with rates as low as 2.5 cents per minute to Mexico

No contract monthly plans

  • $12 – 500 minutes, 500 texts, and 100MB of 4G LTE data
  • $29.95 – Unlimited minutes, unlimited texts national and international, and 3GB of 4G LTE data (drops to 2G once limit is reached)
  • $39.95 – Unlimited minutes, unlimited texts national and international, and 8GB of 4G LTE data (drops to 2G once limit is reached)
  • $55 – Unlimited minutes, unlimited texts national and international, and unlimited 4G LTE data

Can you bring your own device?

Most smartphones will work on the Page Plus network as long as they use a SIM card and are CDMA compatible. To check if your phone is eligible for service you can enter the ESN or MEID number on this page.

If your phone is not compatible then you’ll need to purchase a new phone and Page Plus has a storefront with compatible devices. They offer a wide range of devices from brands such as Samsung, OnePlus, Pixel, and Apple.

Where to learn more

More information can be found on Page Plus’s website or on the company’s FAQ page.

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