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Pay just $59 for lifetime 2TB ThunderDrive cloud storage

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Here’s a question for you: where do you keep your music, important photos, and documents? Please tell us that you’re not storing it in one place.

Smart people backup files to at least one other place. Really smart people keep things in a variety of spots. Google Drive and Google Photos are convenient and really helpful, but it’s not without potential problems or hiccups.

What happens when you get close to filling up your allotted storage space? Before you break out that credit card and purchase more storage through your cloud hosting, or buying an external hard drive, consider the following deal.

How about a lifetime account with 2TB (terabytes) of storage for the price of date night dinner? It’s accessible anywhere you are, secure as hell, and comes with a host of friendly features. Indeed, the promotion we have on ThunderDrive is impossible to resist.

With this lifetime of 2TB of storage, the Pro plan offers up an incredibly affordable place to house your media and files. Not just the things from your desktop PC, either. It’s also mobile friendly and just as convenient.

Features

  • 2 TB lifetime storage
  • 2TB of download bandwidth
  • Shareable password-protected files
  • Set expiration for shared links
  • 30-day trash recovery
  • Upload/download speeds 6x faster than nearest competitors
  • Mobile friendly
  • Secure 256-bit AES encryption
  • SSL/TLS encryption
  • Length of access: lifetime
  • No device limit

Where to Buy

You pick up the lifetime account of ThunderDrive Pro cloud backup plan for only $59 through the AndroidGuys Deals Store. We’re not exaggerating about how much of a bargain this is, either. This runs $1,200 over at ThunderDrive’s website.

Alternatively, you can purchase a personal plan of 500GB for just $29. It, too, is a lifetime account and a massive discount on its normal price.

Best Sellers

Save even more!

For every $25 you spend in the AG Deals Store you get $1 credit added to your account. And, if you refer the deal via social media or an email that results in a purchase, you’ll earn $10 credit in your account.

First Time Buying?

If this is your first time buying, you are also eligible for 10% discount! Just be sure to subscribe for email updates.

Free Stuff

Not looking to spend any money today? No worries. You can still visit the AndroidGuys section for freebies and pick something anyhow.

Verizon 5G comes to four more cities

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Verizon today took another step toward its goal of 5G coverage in 30 markets by the end of the year. Effective immediately, next-gen high speed data is now available in Washington DC, Atlanta, Detroit, and Indianapolis.

As is the case with Verizon’s other 5G cities, it’s Ultra Wideband mmWave technology that works best outdoors and tends to focus on areas where larger groups of people convene. Think college campuses, public parks, and stadiums.

In Washington DC, for instance, the network touches parts of more than 30 neighborhoods and landmarks, including the National Mall, The White House, George Washington University, Capital One Arena, Union Station, Dupont Circle, and the Georgetown Waterfront.

SEE ALSO

In Atlanta, you’ll find it in sections of Downtown, Midtown, Tech Square, Mercedes Benz Stadium, and Centennial Olympic Park.

Detroit consumers will have 5G service in parts of Dearborn, Livonia, and Troy while Indianapolis initially starts in neighborhoods like Arsenal Heights, Crown Hill, Grace Tuxedo Park, Historic Meridian Park, Lockerbie Square, Garfield Park, and Indiana University School of Medicine.

These new cities join Chicago, Denver, Providence, and Minneapolis/St. Paul and will continue to expand with time.

As far as Verizon devices with support for 5G, the carrier currently offers phones from LG, Samsung, and Motorola. Additionally, there’s a mobile hotspot from Inseego, too.

Samsung shakes up tablet line with Galaxy Tab S6

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Samsung on Wednesday introduced the Galaxy Tab S6 ahead of its next Unpacked event. The tablet will be available starting in early September in a variety of colors with a starting price of $650.

The Galaxy Tab S6, like its predecessors, is designed with creativity and productivity in mind. As such, it houses a refreshed approach to the S Pen digital stylus.

With built-in Bluetooth remote control and gesture features like Air Action, the S Pen makes it easy to take selfies, record videos, or scroll through content. It also packs two days worth of battery inside and helps with presentations, note taking, and translations. And, just ten minutes on the charger is enough to power through a full day.

A revised take on the Samsung DeX comes with the Galaxy Tab S6, making it even easier to convert the mobile device into a desktop-like experience. As such, a dedicated button on the Book Cover Keyboard offers up one-touch access to the experience.

The Galaxy Tab S6 is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor and features a 10.5-inch Super AMOLED display. At just 5.7mm thick, the tablet is ultra-slim and lighter than any of its forebears.

Other noteworthy specifications include a dual (13-megapixel and 5-megapixel) rear cameras and a front-facing 8-megapixel sensor. Memory and storage options are 6GB with 128GB and 8GB with 256GB; a microSD expansion card slot allows for up to 512GB of external space.

Rounding out specs are an in-display fingerprint scanner, 7,040mAh battery with fast charging, and four-speaker sound system tuned by AKG.

Availability

The Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 goes up for pre-sale on August 23 in Mountain Gray, Cloud Blue, and Rose Blush colors. General availability begins on September 6 with a starting price of $650.

As part of a limited time promotion, Samsung will offer its Book Cover Keyboard at 50% off with Galaxy Tab S6 pre-orders and purchases made prior to September 22.

An LTE version of the Galaxy Tab S6 arrives later this year.

For $15, this bundle helps developers better harness the Google Cloud Platform

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It’s not hyperbole to say that cloud computing is among the hottest sectors in all of tech. It is used in pretty much any app, game, or service that you use. The world increasingly relies on the cloud.

Knowing how to build, grow, and maintain a cloud-based network for Google Cloud. Moreover, an understanding of components and tools such as Machine Learning, TensorFlow, and Kubernetes is incredibly valuable.

The Google Cloud Platform might not be the most popular cloud offering around, but it may be the best cloud offering. Why? Because TensorFlow, the extremely popular deep learning technology also comes from Google.

This comprehensive guide to TensorFlow and the Google Cloud Platform will help put you on certification track to become a Google Data Engineer or Cloud Architect.

Features

  • Access 166 lectures & 22 hours of content 24/7
  • Cover the material you need to pass Google Data Engineer & Cloud Architect certification exams
  • Explore AppEngine, Kubernetes, & Compute Engine
  • Discuss Big Data & Managed Hadoop w/ Dataproc, Dataflow, BigTable, BigQuery, & more
  • Learn what neural networks & deep learning are, how neurons work, & how neural networks are trained
  • Understand DevOps principles like StackDrive logging, monitoring, & cloud deployment management
  • Discover security, networking, & Hadoop foundations

Availabity

Normally this much education would cost you about $200, and that’s actually worth it. With more than 22 hours of education, there’s some 166 lectures to bring you up to speed. But, for a limited time, we’ll do you one better. Pick up a lifetime license to the GCP: Complete Google Data Engineer and Cloud Architect Guide for just $15, a savings of some 92%.

Best Sellers

Save even more!

For every $25 you spend in the AG Deals Store you get $1 credit added to your account. And, if you refer the deal via social media or an email that results in a purchase, you’ll earn $10 credit in your account.

First Time Buying?

If this is your first time buying, you are also eligible for 10% discount! Just be sure to subscribe for email updates.

Free Stuff

Not looking to spend any money today? No worries. You can still visit the AndroidGuys section for freebies and pick something anyhow.

Google ruined Wear OS

Jason England
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When Google decided to tackle the world of wearable devices, it began with Android Wear. Launched back in 2014, it would eventually become platform-agnostic and rebranded as Wear OS.

It would not be much of an exaggeration to say that Wear OS has been stagnant over the last few years. Sure, there have been minor, incremental updates, but Wear OS has constantly lagged behind the competition.

Over the last half decade Apple, FitBit, Garmin, and Samsung have gone on to find more success with consumers. The reasons vary for each, but it includes branding, prices, and features.

Wrong since launch

One could argue that the main reasons Wear OS has fallen behind in features is due to the closed nature of the operating system. You see, when Google launched Android Wear, it made the decision to lock down the OS.

Unlike what it did with Android, where manufacturers and carriers could make myriad changes to the experience, Android Wear OS was limited to strictly what Google did with it.

Since manufacturers didn’t have the freedom to modify the software, they had to create products with one hand tied behind their back. And that pretty much continues to this day.

Some device makers, such as Samsung, wouldn’t be held back by Android Wear/Wear OS. While it was offering wearables with Google’s platform, it was hedging its bets with a homegrown Tizen OS for smartwatches.

Having full control over the hardware and software, Samsung was able to execute on a vision and produce one of the best watch options for Android users.

Why fix what isn’t broken?

Many of the great features we now enjoy as part of the default Android experience originated from phone makers tweaking software and hardware to make unique, compelling devices.

Android was, and still is, freedom and permission innovate. Without it, features such as always-on displays, split-screen, quick switching between apps, picture-in-picture, and others might not have come around as soon, if ever.

It’s not strictly software features that come with the openness but hardware as well. Fingerprint scanners and dual cameras received platform-level support because manufacturers had control over the software and hardware.

At first, I was thrilled to hear that Google would maintain full control of Wear OS, because this meant products would get updates quicker and have longer support. No wonky software, or fragmented weird user experiences sounds great, right? As we now know, that’s what ruined it.

The lack of collaboration and openness has left Wear OS devices in the dust, while others like Apple and Samsung continue to push forward.

No Nexus or Pixel watch

Google’s reluctance to release its own watch has also harmed the platform. It does a fantastic job of creating an experience that gives consumers a blend of hardware and software on the phone front.

Since the Nexus One we’ve seen where Google thinks the phone space should be in terms of experience. Consumers get an annual reminder of what sort of innovation and technology belongs in the pockets of users.

As to why it has never done this for wearables remains unclear.

Time for a change

As I write this, I sit here with a first-generation Huawei Watch. After nearly four years I have support for the latest Wear OS features like Tiles. You could argue that Google’s locked-down approach accomplished something.

At the same time it has also left the platform lifeless. Timely updates and longer support are only worth it if the platform is worth using. As we’ve seen so far, things aren’t all that exciting on the watch front.

Your thoughts?

What would you do to address Wear OS? Is it salvageable or might it be better served by putting it out to pasture? Would a Pixel Watch pique your interest?

Leave a comment below with your opinion on the state of Wear OS and where you think it will go.

Google officially confirms gestures and face unlock features for Pixel 4

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Google on Monday confirmed that its forthcoming handset, the Pixel 4, will support gestures and facial recognition for unlocking. A post on its blog advises it will be used in areas such as snoozing alarms, skipping songs, and dismissing calls.

SEE ALSO

The last five years has seen a division within Google working to bring motion-sensing radar technology to devices. Dubbed ‘Soli’, it’s the brains behind a number of new and interesting features.

For the new phone, Google has found a way to include a tiny version of it at the top. It will be used to sense small motions around the phone and work in conjunction with software algorithms to recognize nearby gestures.

Likewise, Soli is used in a new face unlock capability for the next-gen device. Whereas most phone require holding them in a certain way or being lifted all the way up, the Pixel 4’s face unlocking is smarter, if not more forgiving.

The new phone will automatically start to enable the face unlock feature as soon as it’s picked up. It will work in both portrait and landscape mode and even upside down.

The “Motion Sense” tech is expected to get better over time and as such, so will the Pixel 4 experience.

Samsung Galaxy Fold gets a September release

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Samsung this week released a statement regarding the status of its folding smartphone, the Galaxy Fold. According to the device maker, it will get a wide release starting in September.

After its first run of review units proved to have a number of design problems back in April, Samsung ultimately scrapped its formal launch. The decision was made to regroup and make adjustments to the design, leaving its debut to linger for the unforeseeable future.

Having spent the last few months refining the experience, Samsung is ready to outline a handful of changes it made to the Galaxy Fold. Generally speaking, the revisions are in an attempt to strengthen the phone and protect vital components.

At the same time, Samsung took the opportunity to improve the user interface and overall software experience for the Galaxy Fold. Apps and services have been further optimized to take advantage of the foldable screen and the UX should feel more cohesive.

Changes made in the Galaxy Fold design include:

  • The top protective layer of the Infinity Flex Display has been extended beyond the bezel, making it apparent that it is an integral part of the display structure and not meant to be removed.
  • Galaxy Fold features additional reinforcements to better protect the device from external particles while maintaining its signature foldable experience:
  • The top and bottom of the hinge area have been strengthened with newly added protection caps.
    • Additional metal layers underneath the Infinity Flex Display have been included to reinforce the protection of the display.
    • The space between the hinge and body of Galaxy Fold has been reduced.

Availability

Samsung isn’t quite ready to provide an exact launch date for the Galaxy Fold, but it does plan to share more specific details in the coming weeks.

Previously AT&T and T-Mobile were committed to offering the phone, however it appears T-Mobile may have walked back its support for the device.

Garmin has given me the Pebble replacement I’ve always wanted with the Forerunner 645 Music

Andrew Allen
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I’ve long been searching for a proper smartwatch replacement for the pioneering Pebble Watch. I want all week battery life, easy to read display, and button navigation only. You’d think this would be easily accomplished, but it’s not. That was until I found Garmin’s new Forerunner models.

Design

We covered some brand new models back in May, and the spec sheet had me strongly considering the Forerunner 245. However, the all-plastic housing made me nervous. I started looking for deals on the previously released Forerunner 645. It had a full metal watch face but with very similar specs to the 245.

I love the fact that Garmin makes a smartwatch without touch input. I don’t want to fumble with tiny UI elements to interact with a watch face. And the Forerunner 645 doesn’t disappoint. The 5-button layout works well but is not without a learning curve.

Let’s start to the left of the watch. This array has 3 buttons. The top is simply for turning the backlight on and off. The screen is always on but stays dim when you are not interacting directly with it. Long-pressing the top button gives you a scroll-wheel of shortcuts to a variety of menu options: Power on/off, Wallet for payments, and the stopwatch to name a few.

The middle and bottom buttons are for scrolling and selecting menu items. You can use these to scroll up and down through the main widgets from the “home” screen. This will also scroll through pages on notifications such as text or emails.

Both have a secondary option when long-pressed. The middle button takes you to the Settings of both the entire watch or specific widgets. If you are on the home screen it will take you to the watch Settings, but if you have a widget like Weather open, it will offer those Settings instead.

The bottom-left button will drop you into the music menu and controls when long-pressed. This is the music edition of the Forerunner 645, so I’ll expand on that later. For now, just know the long-press will allow you things like pausing, track forward, and volume.

Around the right side, you find two more buttons. The topmost button is for selecting items on the Forerunner 645. When you receive notifications, you hit the top button to open the bubble with a single press. It also doubles as a shortcut button, on a long-press,  to activities you can log on the watch like a run, bike ride, track running, or swimming.

The final button on the bottom of the right side of the bezel is for going back one selection from any menu. As you progress through the widgets and menus this button will always take you back to the previous screen.

Biometric Tracking and App

If you are buying the Garmin Forerunner 645 it’s most likely for the great tracking feature-set that the company offers with its line up smartwatches. You get awesome information about your daily steps, heart rate, and sleep patterns.

I really like the Garmin Connect app. The steps seem to be accurate and it also does a great job of tracking my heart rate and sleep. You can set goals and alerts for your steps. It will also start giving you notifications after a few weeks to push you on days that you are below your daily average.

Sleep and heart rate notifications are similar in Connect will start to see trends in your data. If you spike while doing a normal activity you will get an alert. If you have multiple nights of poor sleep it will send you a push notification.

I can’t personally speak to it, but you also get female menstruation tracking via the app and its built-in calendar. This allows for cycle tracking and patterns. The Connect app allows you to log physical and emotional symptoms to create a better look at your overall health during these times.

The Connect app is very robust and covers the normal activity for a novice fitness user all the way to the advanced runner that the Forerunner is really all about. It can automatically pick up a run and use the internal GPS to map your path and help you navigate it.

During a run, the watch will help you keep track of biometrics such as cadence, stride length, ground contact time and your vertical ratios. These are key functions to help serious runners understand their form and opportunities to improve their results through data around your technique.

Music

Let’s bring it back to the Music part of the Forerunner 645’s title. This slight modification to the standard 645 allows for users to use some of the most popular streaming apps without the need of your phone. Using great apps from Deezer, Spotify, and iHeartRadio, you can sync up to 500 songs to have on your watch.

Once synced, or if you choose to only control local music on your phone, you get controls from the widget on the watch. As previously mentioned, you can access by scrolling through the UI or by long-pressing the bottom left button. This gives you quick access to play/pause, forward, previous, and volume controls to audio.

It’s a nice touch to see Garmin recognize that runners don’t want to always want to take their phones with them on the trail. Paired with the onboard GPS, the music sync option makes for a great combination to leave your smartphone at home and still enjoy an extended run.

Battery Life

This is honestly my favorite part of the Garmin Forerunner 645. I can realistically stay away from an outlet for a full week of usage. Garmin rates the 645 Music at 7 days of notifications and 5 days with mixed GPS and music playback. I’ve found this to be pretty comparable to real-time use for me.

The Forerunner 645 is the first smartwatch that can hold a candle to my old Pebble Time concerning battery life. This is a huge win for those of us that don’t want another gadget we constantly have to stress about keeping charged. I charge my Forerunner every Sunday night and I’m comfortable for the entire week.

Final Thoughts

The title speaks for itself. The Garmin Forerunner 645 Music is my new favorite smartwatch. Is it the flashiest? No. Does it have a plethora of apps? No. Despite those misses, Garmin has a watch that mirrors your notifications very well, has amazing battery life, and allows me to interact without a tiny touchscreen.

It truly is the first device to hit all those marks for me in years. Now, for the final negative: price. This is the 2nd highest tier of watch Garmin sells. At $450 with Music and $400 without it, the Forerunner 645 is out of range for casual consumers. The good news is Garmin also offers a 245 and 45 series with a few compromises that most would trade for a smaller hit to their wallets.

You can check out the Forerunner 645 Music via Garmin’s website or for those with Prime can order them from Amazon as well (Amazon currently has the better deal on the Music at $398). If you do make the leap for the premium aspects of the Forerunner 645, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed as an Android user.

Motorola debuts $150 Moto E6 with removable battery, portrait mode

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Motorola on Thursday introduced the sixth generation of its E series smartphone, offering up a $150 experience that’s going to be damn tough to beat. Indeed, the Moto E6 dials things up across a few fronts, yet keeps the price in line.

As is the case with all Motorola phones, the Moto E6 runs a clean version of Android (9 Pie) with just the right amount of added features. The phone is immediately available through Verizon and will be offered through a variety of other carriers over the coming months.

The Moto E6 has a 5.5-inch display at 1,440 x 720 pixels with an 18:9 aspect ratio. Tucked below are a Qualcomm Snapdragon 435 processor; it’s an octa-core chip at 1.4GHz.

Memory is listed at 2GB with storage capacity at 16GB, however a microSD expansion card slot allows for up to 256GB of additional space.

In an interesting twist, the Moto E6 comes with a removable 3,000mAh battery. It has been some time since we’ve seen that in devices in general, and perhaps a sign that things may move that direction in the lower end of phones.

SEE ALSO

Another area where Motorola makes a change is in the camera. There is a 13-megapixel f2.0, 1.12um camera with LED flash and PDAF (phase detection autofocus) on the back with a 5 MP, f2.0, 1.12um pixels lens around front. This marks the first time in the E series that Portrait Mode and Spot Color are included. Moreover, low light scenarios and outdoor shots should be improved over its predecessors.

Availability

The Motorola Moto E6 is available in Starry Black at Verizon with a retail price of $150. Consumers in the US will also see it offered at  T-Mobile, Metro by T-Mobile, Boost Mobile, U.S. Cellular, Consumer Cellular, and Xfinity Mobile. Select carriers might see a Navy Blue model, too.

A universally unlocked Motorola Moto E6 will also arrive at Amazon.com, Best Buy, B&H Photo and Walmart. Canadians should expect to see it later this summer.

How to pair a Bluetooth speaker with your Google Home or Home Mini

Jason England
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The Google Home and Home Mini are fantastic additions to a smart home, but have you ever wished they had better sound quality? Perhaps, like that expensive Bluetooth speaker you bought years ago. The good news is, you can actually pair your Bluetooth speakers with the Google Home speakers.

Read More: How to make your Google Home devices sound better

This is the perfect way to supercharge those cheap Google Home Mini speakers you might have scattered across your home. Plus, it really takes your whole-home audio to the next level when you use bigger better speakers. Best of all, it’s not even that difficult to set up, just follow the steps below.

1. Turn on your Bluetooth speaker and put it into pairing mode.
2. Open the Google Home app.
3. Select the Google Home speaker you wish to connect the Bluetooth speaker to.
4. Tap on the settings cog.
5. Scroll down and choose Default music speaker.
6. Tap on Pair Bluetooth speaker.
7. Now, choose your Bluetooth speaker.
8. After the speaker has paired, hit the done button and you’re all set.

That’s all you have to do, it might look like a lot of steps but it’s actually pretty quick and simple to set up. Now, that you have the speaker paired, there are some things you should know.

All voice responses, alarms, and timers will continue to playback through the Google Home or Home mini speaker. The Bluetooth speaker will only be used for media playback. To adjust the volume of the Bluetooth speaker you will need to use the command, “Hey Google, turn up/down the music volume.”

Also, it is possible to connect multiple Bluetooth speakers to your Google Home, but it will only connect to one at a time. By default, your Google Home will connect to the most recently connected device automatically, but only if that Bluetooth speaker is powered on.

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