T-Mobile on Monday introduced a new “Magenta MAX” premium plan which offers truly unlimited “premium” data. That is to say, users get full-speed 4G and 5G with no restrictions.
The Magenta MAX plan, which replaces the Magenta Plus plan effective February 24, is offered to both consumer and small business accounts. For the money, subscribers get unlimited talk, text, and “premium” data. And rather than throttling your usage at a set amount of usage, you’ll get all-you-can-use, with up to 40GB for mobile hotpsot.
Magenta MAX also comes with other features found in T-Mobile’s plans, including “Netflix on Us”, T-Mobile Tuesdays, free texting and data in 210 countries, Scam Shield Premium protection, and more.
Magenta MAX is the same as the Magenta Plus plan it replaces, which is $85 per month for a single line with AutoPay discount. A two-line plan brings the price down to $70 per line; three lines are $57 each; four lines are $50 a piece.
T-Mobile is also boosting its core Magenta plan by doubling the Premium Data from 50GB to 100GB per month. Additionally, it is punching the mobile hotspot data up from 3GB to 5GB per month.
Verizon might be the largest wireless service provider in the United States, but that doesn’t mean it’s the only one that uses its towers. Indeed, there are other brands and services which pay for access to Verizon’s network.
Each of these mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) offers its own rate plans, phone selection, billing, and customer service. These companies simply rely on Verizon for cellular coverage.
If you have Verizon and want to switch providers, you may want to hold on to your device. After all, you paid for it and aren’t ready to give it up. Or, maybe you just love the coverage.
We’ve gathered up some of the cheapest rate plans you can find for the various carriers that use Verizon’s network. This isn’t every option available, but rather a list of the ones we like best.
As the only rate plan offered at this carrier, $40 per month gives subscribers unlimited talk, text, and high-speed data. Also included is access to Verizon 5G and unlimited mobile hotspot capabilities with speeds up to 5Mbps. The phone selection isn’t huge, but it’s getting better all the time.
The Party Pay option is a fun way of grouping multiple lines together. Everyone gets their own account and prices drop based on the number of users. How cool is that?
For a limited time you can get your first month for only $25.
For $50 per month subscribers can have unlimited talk and text with 3GB of data. If you tend to use WiFi for much of your data consumption, this may be a good option. Also includes unlimited calls to Canada and Mexico. Oh, and feel good knowing that a portion of your bill goes to nonprofits.
Designed with senior citizens in mind, this rate plan gives customers unlimited talk and text and it comes with a health and safety package with 5Star Service for emergency situations.
Among the cheapest rate plans you’ll find with “unlimited” data, this $20 option gives subscribers 2GB of high speed access. Hit the threshold and speeds are slowed to 2G for the rest of the month, but that might not matter to its target users. Also comes with unlimited talk and text.
Pick up unlimited talk, text, and 5GB of high speed data for the price of a steak dinner. Of course, you can have more data after hitting the threshold, but it’s slowed to 2G for the rest of the billing cycle. Save a buck on your plan each month by signing up for automatic refills.
Unlimited talk, text, and 5GB of 4G LTE data is yours for just $35 per month. Enroll in automatic bill payment and you can get it for just $33.20. Also cool, the plan now includes mobile hotspot, too
The new TracFone plans are much more appealing all around, but especially for those who like data. Now, for just $30 per month you get unlimited talk, text, and 3GB high-speed data. Not only that, but you also get to carry unused data over for as long as you stay an active subscriber. Get your first two months for just $25 each.
This no-contract plan includes unlimited talk and text, plus unlimited data at “fast” speeds, or up to 5Mbps. For an extra five bucks per month users can get a much quicker (200+ Mbps) data connection while another $5 adds 10GB worth of mobile hotspot. Not too shabby for $50.
Nice and simple, this all-inclusive plan gives users unlimited calls, texting, and 4G LTE. Oh, and it also includes personal hotspots and even allows for 5G where available. The only major caveat here is that it requires a post-pay subscription to a residential Xfinity Internet service first. If you’re a bundler, you’ll love this one.
When you think about wireless headphones what comes to mind? Today it’s easy to picture premium products with excellent battery life and great audio. This wasn’t always the case.
It was not that long ago that the idea of wireless audio brought to mind crackly audio, poor connections, and a generally average experience. Bitrates were poor, sound was generally flat and hollow, and even delivered in mono.
Thanks to True Wireless Stereo (TWS) and the advances of codecs, it’s now commonplace to have a robust audio experience on a wireless connection. And it doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg.
EOZ is a relatively newer manufacturer who walks a fine line, balancing affordability with excellent hardware. It first launched the EOC Arc ANC Headphones through Kickstarter, finding success with more than $160,000 in backing.
We’ve had a pair of these wireless headphones in the office for a few weeks now, putting them through the paces. Here are our thoughts on the EOZ Arc wireless headphones.
Design
The first thing we noticed about about these headphones is that they look much more expensive than they are at just $110. Constructed from aluminum, stainless steel, and “vegan leather”, they’re solid and sophisticated looking, with a very modern design.
The EOZ Arc are very soft to wear and feel quite comfortable against the head. They’re over-the-ear so that means you’ll get a nice seal with your head. We found them to be enjoyable to wear for short bursts and even on the occasional multi-hour listening. The padding did seem to “smoosh” over long bouts of listening but it bounces back to its original shape fairly quick.
There are three buttons on the left ear (power, volume up, volume down) which serve multiple purposes. Double-tapping them can skip tracks, for instance. Additionally, you can use them to take calls or activate your digital assistant. Also present here is a USB Type-C charging port.
The right ear cup has a 3.5mm headphone jack in the even you want to plug in directly for a wired experience. Here you’ll also locate the active noise cancelling (ANC) toggle.
Performance
The EOZ Arc pair over Bluetooth 5.0 and provide support for the SBC, AAC, and aptX codecs. This means you’ll get a more consistent connection, easier pairing, and longer range for listening away from your audio source. The codecs allow you to better enjoy your music, getting a more accurate sound.
Battery life is rated at up to 24 hours but we found that to be an ambitious claim. Even factoring in that these numbers are usually based on 50% volume level, we ended up short of that the first few times we’ve used them.
Fortunately, we live in a world where charging our products is not a hassle or burden. And when you think about charging headphones once a three or four days just to be safe, it’s not bothersome. Our guess, though, is that you’ll get maybe 18 hours of audio. Charging, for its part, takes maybe two hours maximum to fully replenish.
Switching over to the wired connection is a fine way to extend the battery life or fill in when the headphones may have died. Doing that, however, removes all of the functions like ANC and volume. Everything is then controlled by the music source.
The Arc headphones have 40mm drivers which results in a rich, deep bass. It’s not overly present though; the soundstage is fairly wide, representing the highs and mids quite well.
Most of what you hear in music is often captured in the middle and that is strong here. That said, the bass punches through when called for while the cymbals and high-hats accent and punctuate.
We might have liked it if the headphones folded into themselves or became just a little more compact. Fortunately, they do come with a carrying case to keep them protected. Just something to keep in mind if you plan to pack them in a suitcase or backpack.
Standout Features
Premium design made from stainless steel and aluminum
ANC to fully immerse yourself in music
Lightweight earpads made from vegan/protein leather and high density, adaptive memory foam
Bluetooth 5.0 with dual-microphone for clear calls
Multiple codec support
Bottom Line
We were pretty impressed with the EOZ Arc headphones. Audio quality was better than expected at this price and the build quality was a welcome surprise. Battery life claims aren’t that accurate, but we don’t mind having to charge them once or twice a week.
Tax season might only come around once a year but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be thinking about your finances at other times of the year. Managing your money isn’t necessarily easy but that doesn’t mean it has to be difficult. It’s also something you can get better at doing.
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Buying a new flagship phone or first-of-its-kind from a big-name brand is expensive. The Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra could cost you upwards of $1,200 or more if you’re not trading something in. Want a folding phone? Open that wallet up wide.
Having the latest and greatest is nice, but truth be told, most users can get away with a phone that’s one or two generations behind. They’re plenty powerful enough and often cost a fraction of the price of something brand new.
Buying a good used phone is an excellent way to save money and yet still end up with a device that’s better than your current one.
The decision to purchase is not just about price; here are some factors to ensure you get the most out of your new phone. Follow these steps and you’ll have a device and experience that you love.
When to buy
The best time to buy a used phone is just after its successor arrives. This is when the early adopters dump their handset as they look to pick up the newest and fanciest model.
In most cases phones are sold in an annual cycle, but it could vary by a month or so. The Samsung Galaxy S line is often introduced in the spring while its stylus-centric Galaxy Note sibling arrives in the fall.
If you can time your purchase around the release of a key phone, it could give you something that’s not all that old.
Research the price
If you have a particular phone in mind, do a little bit of homework. Find out what others are selling the phone for and get a feel for its price.
Browse places like Swappa, eBay, Glyde, Gazelle, and Amazon and you’ll get an understanding of what the current value is for a phone. If you’re checking eBay, look for items sold (not just listed) as that’s more indicative.
Swappa provides a marketplace dedicated to buying and selling used phones.
Pay particular attention to specifications like the memory and storage. Many phones do not come with one storage capacity.
Understand the phone
It doesn’t matter how good a price is for something if it doesn’t work. The most important factor in purchasing a new handset is ensuring that it will work with your current, or prospective carrier. Note whether it is locked to a particular service provider or if it’s unlocked.
If you’re using AT&T, T-Mobile, or one of their respective brands, you should be fine with an unlocked phone. Verizon subscribers need to pay closer attention to make sure it’s either universally unlocked, or can be paired to its network.
Software
When possible, try to avoid older phones that run software that’s a couple of generations behind. You might find the experience lacking and slow. More importantly, this could mean the phone may no longer receive security updates and patches.
Battery life
Does your new phone have a removable battery? If not, consider that the battery life might not be as good as it was when the device was new. Should the phone be two years old, you could be looking at less than desirable battery life. Or, you might have to rely on an external power supply more often.
What else is offered?
Are you just buying a phone or are you getting other items with it? The original charger, for instance, could add a little bit of value. Many Android phones offer fast charging and come with a compatible charger.
Does your prospective phone have a screen protector on it? Is there a protective case or two thrown in the bundle? These might save you a few bucks down the road or at least buy you some time.
If your seller has the original box, that’s also a good indication that you aren’t dealing with a stolen phone.
Condition is key
What are you willing to tolerate? Are you okay with a few scrapes and scratches? Do you mind a dent or two? The more you’re content to overlook, the lower the price goes.
On the other hand, don’t bother with phones with chips and cracks in the glass unless you know what you’re up against. It might be $100-$200 to completely replace the glass. At that rate you may as well look for something that has its screen.
If you’re buying from a friend or co-worker, you probably have a sense for how the phone has been treated. A stranger on the internet? Proceed with caution and make sure you’re protected with a good return policy.
Know your rights
If you’re buying a phone from Swappa, eBay, or an online retailer, get a sense for your return policy. What happens if the phone you’re sent doesn’t match up to the description? Can you get your money back?
Most physical damage is easy to spot as soon as you receive your phone, but it can take some time to identify malfunctioning hardware or problematic software.
Make a note of the final day you’re allowed to return your phone and exercise the option if you need to.
Look your phone over
You’ve pulled the trigger and made the purchase. Congratulations, you have a new (to you) phone!
As soon as you get your phone, start evaluating it. Look it over, check for the imperfections that were, or were not, called out in the sale. Is there anything here that surprises you?
Check for water damage. On older phones, or those with removable batteries, you can look for a red stripe on the battery. If it’s blurred and shows evidence of water, that could pose problems in the long run. Newer models can show water damage through the nano-SIM card slot.
If you find that the phone is not what you expected, move quickly to contact the buyer. The sooner you deal with any problems, or at least call attention to them, the better your chances of a positive resolution.
Audio apps are a great way to kill time while on mobile devices. Podcasts are the new media consumption platform that is thriving in the digital age and everyone is jumping on board this train. Audials Play offers a new app for listening, but it’s more than just a podcasting app.
Remember radio?
Radio used to be king for listening to audio while on the go. It’s honestly the progression that led to podcasts. But with more and more people using their smartphones, radio has fallen by the wayside a bit. Audials has implemented internet radio within the app and it’s a welcome addition.
From Audials Play, you can access over 36,000 local radio stations around the United States. Want to drop in on international channels? That’s there too. Audials has 100,000 stations that can be sorted by region, state, or genre.
What makes it different from what your car antenna picks up? Well, since these stations are being streamed, Audials offers the great ability to record shows and songs. This makes the app a unique hybrid of traditional broadcast radio and on-demand content like podcasts.
Podcasts are the new wave
Radio is cool and all, but let’s be honest, podcasts are addicting for a reason. The on-demand audio files can be enjoyed whenever and wherever your schedule allows. Audial knows this as well and has implemented podcasts into the Play app.
Audials Play utilizes this in a familiar fashion. You can search or browse podcasts to find your preferred streams. Once you’ve found your favorite show, you can stream it on-demand or download the episodes for true offline listening.
You can also “follow” your best shows by adding them to the Audial’s Style menu. Style is basically your favorites pinned to the podcast landing page. This allows you easy access to those handfuls of shows you always want to be updated quickly without searching the app each time.
Web sync
Another good thing about Audials Play is the sync. Once you create a login, you can pick up where you left off on the web or desktop apps. This allows users to have a robust option for listening playback regardless of platform or device.
Busy UI
My only complaint about the Audials Play app would be the interface. It’s a little overwhelming. While it’s nice that it offers so many ways and stations to listen to great audio content, navigating this UI is challenging at times.
The way to subscribe to podcasts to the Style and that terminology is so different from other podcasting apps is disjointed as well. It took me several minutes to even figure it out. This makes for a very unintuitive interaction.
My first thought was it simply wasn’t possible and I then discovered a long-press on the show would give me the pop-up menu. Even then, I still had to guess and assume that “add to Style” was what I was looking for to add to Favorites.
Conclusion
Despite these few pitfalls, Audials Play is an interesting app for those that enjoy the spoken word content. With both traditional broadcast radio via the web and podcasts, you have a massive selection that just isn’t possible in most other podcasting apps.
Add this to you can treat the local stations much like podcasts with downloads and subscribing, and Audials really has a truly unique app worth the download on Android. You can snag the app from the Play Store now for free.
Remember back in 2019 when hopping a continent wasn’t a big deal? Instead of facemasks or hand sanitizer, international travelers had to worry about how they would charge their multitude of electronic devices. Not only did you have to pack your travel device specific charging adapter, you had to worry about voltage converters or plug adapters.
Wouldn’t it be nice if you could have a single converter/adapter that you could use almost everywhere in the world? And what if that converter/adapter could charge up to 6 devices simultaneously so that you didn’t have to worry about bringing the extra adapters? It may have arrived during a global pandemic and international travel bans, but the Charwego 45W charger/adapter is going to be a must have for jetsetters.
Design
The Charwego 45W charger/adapter measures at 1.89” x 2.95” x 2.28”. It weighs 6.2oz. It’s considerably larger than the wall warts that used to come with your smartphone but you have to keep in mind that this potentially replaces your laptop, smartphone, and tablet chargers. Size-wize, it’s about the size of 3 decks of cards stacked together. It features 4x USB Type-A, 1x USB Type-C and pass-through power for 110v and 220v outlets.
What is truly ingenious about the Charwego charger/adapter is the method in which international plugs extend and retract into the body of the charger itself. Switching from one plug type is as simple as pushing a button to retract the current plug and move a lever to select the necessary plug for your country. The sliders are labeled US, EU, UK, and AUS. Combined, they cover over 200 countries. No need to carry a bag of conversion adapters.
Performance
Without a proper electric current meter, I’m not able to measure the exact wattage delivered by the Charwego, so I have to take their word at face value. The combined charging output of the device is 45 watts.
While the Charwego can charge up to 6 devices simultaneously, it is limited to 45W total output. Technically, the device itself can only charge five devices via its 4x USB-A and single USB-C ports. The sixth device requires that you use a separate charging adapter plugged into the Charwego as a pass-through. The USB-A ports are further limited to 12W or 2.5 amps of charging at 5v. The single USB-C port supports 5V3A, 9V2A, 12V3A, 15V3A, or 20V2.25A.
If you’re looking to quick charge your device, unfortunately you are limited to the single USB-C port. Reading through their Kickstarter campaign, this is the chief complaint and reason for cancellation of pledges.
I was successfully able to concurrently charge two phones, a portable battery charger and Bluetooth speaker using the Charwego without tripping the auto-resetting circuit breaker built into the charger. I didn’t notice any significant slowdown when charging simultaneous devices.
Summary
If you can live with the charge rate limitations, the Charwego is a compelling device for frequent global travelers. Even when you’re not traveling, the Charwego might be a good charger since it consumes a single outlet while also allowing a pass-through.
The Charwego is 100% funded having met their Kickstarter campaign goal in just 3 days since going live in December of 2020. Having sold out of their early bird pricing levels, the current cost to back this project is a minimum of $44.99 USD which is 23% off of their retail price of $59. Similar devices are available through your “prime” online retailer but aren’t capable of delivering 45W of total power as well as being limited to fewer international plug types.
Google on Thursday rolled out its first semi-official look at the next version of Android. The Android 12 Developer Preview is now available for select Pixel smartphones, giving developers and eager users a glimpse of things to come.
As we normally see with Developer Preview releases the changes are deeper and behind the scenes. The user-facing stuff usually comes in later, beta releases.
According to a roadmap published by Android Developers, there should be two more previews followed by four beta releases. The first stable build should be the fourth beta which is tentatively scheduled for August. Of course all of this is subject to change.
The whole point of releases such as these is to give developers and device makers a chance to work with the future version of Android. This way they can ensure they’re ready for the official debut which tends to arrive in the fall season.
This is not to say that regular users can’t, or won’t, go about installing Android 12 on their phones now. Google is making the Android 12 Developer Preview available to Pixel 3, 3a, 4, 4a, 4a 5G, and 5 handsets.
If you’d like to learn more about what Android 12 has in store so far, head to the official developer website. There’ll you’ll find information on Behavior Changes and Features. And if you’d like to install Android on your Pixel phone, you’ll want to click this link.
Verizon Prepaid on Thursday announced a new promotion which gives its customers a free month of service. Indeed, anyone who signs up to the prepaid carrier and activates a phone, tablet, or Jetpack plan and maintains the line for two months, gets the third month for free.
This offer doesn’t override or negate other promotions, either. The loyalty discount kicks in on the fourth month, dropping the rate plan by $5 per month. After six more months (nine total), the rate is dropped another $5 per month.
Verizon Prepaid customers also have access to the 5G Ultra Wideband and 5G Nationwide networks. As of today there are 64 cities with the next-gen lighting quick speeds.
The free month of service offer is available to new subscribers until April 30, 2021.
Samsung has seen its share of trouble when it comes to apps running in the background of its phones. As it appears today, there seems to be an issue plaguing Android users. The problem? Apps are being forced closed in the background.
If you are on a Samsung device that runs Android 11 / OneUI 3.0 or 3.1, you can try this quick fix to make sure your favorite apps keep running in the background.
Samsung phone killing your favorite app? Try this quick and easy fix!
Samsung has been a frequent offender on dontkillmyapp, a website meant to track the most egregious OEMs when it comes to killing apps in the background. Reportedly, Samsung has been doing this behavior since Android P (Android 9); this is a pretty widespread issue.
Recently, Samsung has gotten more aggressive with killing apps, particularly on their smartphones running Android 11 / OneUI 3.0/3.1. The issue is persisting on their previous phones as well, but this guide will focus on addressing people plagued on the aforementioned handsets.
You can find additional fixes for your S10, S9, and S8 linked at the bottom of the guide.
Start by opening up your Settings app and navigating to Apps.
Scroll down to the app that is having trouble staying awake in the background. For this instance, I will be using WhatsApp. Scroll until you find your app of choice and tap on it.
Tap on Battery.
Scroll down until you find Optimize battery usage and tap on it.
At the top center of the screen, navigate to the drop down box that says Apps not optimized and select All Apps.
You are now seeing all of the apps, including system apps. From here, find the app that you wish to enable to run in the background and ensure its toggle it set to the on position as shown in the screenshot below.
While you are on the above menu, you can do the same with any other apps you wish to keep running in the background such as social media or news apps.
Dontkillmyapp has handy guides if you are on older Samsung phones and are facing a similar issue. You can find their guides for various handsets by clicking here.
If this guide helped you, do let us know in the comments section below.
